411 Box Office Report: Mortal Kombat II Gets Held Off By Devil Wears Prada 2

Miranda Priestley was the villain Johnny Cage couldn’t knock out this weekend, as Mortal Kombat II opened behind The Devil Wears Prada 2. The comedy sequel reigned supreme in its second weekend, edging past its new competition to win with a $43 million weekend.

That’s an impressive hold for the film, which was down just 44% from its $76.7 million opening weekend. Considering the film’s heavy overperformance, there was the expectation that it would fall a little further but so far, so good for 20th Century Studios. The hold is actually better than that of the first Devil Wears Prada, which was down 45% in its second weekend back in July of 2006.

Prada 2 is now soaring massively high, with $144.8 million domestically and $433.2 million off of a $100 million budget. The film is a major hit for the studio and should be able to finish out well above $200 million domestically by the end of its run.

As for Mortal Kombat II, it opened a bit lower than expected. The video game adaptation sequel brought in $40 million for the weekend. Tracking early last week had it pegged at the $50 million range, so this is a minor disappointment for the film though not a disaster. The start is a major improvement on the 2021 movie’s $23.3 million start — but we have to remember that that film opened early as theaters were opening up post-pandemic lockdown, and also opened day-and-date on HBO Max.

So what happened here? Well, for starters, the “first” one isn’t particularly beloved. The 2021 film was polarizing to audiences, which dampened enthusiasm for the sequel. And beyond the addition of Karl Urban as Johnny Cage, there isn’t a lot of star power in this franchise. But it’s also not a disastrous opening. Critics did like this one better than the original, with a 65% aggregate score on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences like it fine with a B CinemaScore and an 89% RT audience rating.

The question here is whether the positive buzz and word of mouth will be strong enough to give it legs. It also underperformed somewhat overseas with $23 million (expectations were around $30 million) for a $63 million worldwide start. It has a long way to go to make back its $80 million production budget, and it’s not yet clear if it will be able to do so. Domestically it should make it to at least $90 million, perhaps more if it holds better than expected.

Michael continues to deliver, with the music biopic down just 33% in its third weekend to bring in $36.5 million. The Antione Fuqua-directed film has proven itself to be a major crowd pleaser, and Lionsgate is reaping the benefits. Michael has now grossed a fantastic $240.5 million stateside and $577.4 million overseas, profitable even with its $155 million budget. The film’s legs are aiming it toward a potential $300 million domestic total.

Amazon MGM scored with its counterprogramming as The Sheep Detectives opened better than expected. The CGI/live action hybrid crime comedy took in $15.9 million to start, above its low double-digit expectations. It’s a solid opening for the film, though it will need some serious legs to justify its $75 million budget.

Sheep Detectives does have critic audience sentiment in its favor. The film is currently riding a 93% RT critic score, a 96% RT audience score, and an A- CinemaScore. And to be clear, Amazon MGM is not particularly looking for this to be a hit strictly off theatrical. They knew well that the family comedy was going to have a long road to profit that includes home viewing and overseas numbers, the latter of which started with $12.1 million for a $28 million start. As it stands, the film should have solid legs and could easily make it to $40 million domestically. Whether it will be profitable is something we’ll have to wait and see.

Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft—The Tour had an unremarkable but solid start, as it took in $7.5 million. Again, this is somewhat below the low double digits start that was expected. The film, which was directed by James Cameron, is a good example of the difficulty in opening concert films if you’re not a K-pop act or Taylor Swift.

Which is not to say that Hit Me Hard and Soft is not doing okay. It’s doing fine, even with a $20 million budget due to Cameron’s 3D approach to the film. It’s simply not a stratospheric launch. Add in the overseas numbers ($12.6 million) and it’s up to $20.6 million. Paramount Pictures is going to hope though that this has legs more like a Cameron film and less like a concert film, a genre that often ends up frontloaded. Fortunately, the critic sentiment is good (93% on RT) as are the audience reactions (99% RT audience score, A CinemaScore). It’s not clear how long this will stay in theaters, but the film should be able to get to at least $20 million, particularly if it holds well throughout the coming week.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie was down 45% to $6.6 million in its fifth weekend. The video game sequel is now at $412.1 million in the US and $941.2 million worldwide, mega-money opposite a budget of $110 million. $440 million remains the domestic target, with $1 billion worldwide very possible.

Project Hail Mary’s was down a mere 29% in its eighth weekend, bringing in $6.1 million. Hail Mary is also a massive hit with $327.8 million stateside and $655.8 million worldwide, very profitable for Amazon-MGM against a $190 million budget. It will finish off around $340 million.

Damian McCarthy’s Hokum was down an expected 49% in its second weekend. The folk horror-tinged haunted hotel film from Noan brought in $3.3 million. It’s good enough to have the film nicely on the path of profit for Neon. Hokum currently has $12.5 million in the US and $14.3 million worldwide against a budget of just $5 million, making it a profitable venture for the indie studio. It’s still looking to finish around $16 million or so, perhaps slightly more.

Deep Water slipped 63% in its second weekend, with the shark attack thriller grossing $780,000. That’s a fine enough result for an inexpensive film from Magenta Light Studios. The movie has $3.7 million and will finish around $5 million before hitting digital.

Angel Studios’ Animal Farm fell very hard, dropping a terrible 80% in its sophomore frame. The Andy Serkis-directed animated adaptation of the George Orwell book added $663,000 to its totals. It now has $5 million total and won’t likely get much further than that. It’s going to be a major money loser in theaters against a $35 million budget and now looks to home viewing to make the deficit up.

Next week will see a rematch between the top three with no new openings expected to get to their numbers. The highest-profile release is horror film Obsession, which is aiming at the $10 million range. Guy Ritchie’s In the Grey is looking at a single digit start.

Box Office Top Ten (Three-Day Domestic Numbers)

1. The Devil Wears Prada 2 – $43 million ($144.8 million total, $433.2 million WW)
2. Mortal Kombat II – $40 million ($40 million domestically, $63 million WW)
3. Michael – $36.5 million ($240.5 million total, $577.4 million WW)
4. The Sheep Detectives – $15.9 million ($15.9 million total, $28 million WW)
5. Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft—The Tour – $7.5 million ($7.5 million total, $20.1 million WW)
6. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie – $6.6 million ($412.1 million total, $941.2 million WW)
7. Project Hail Mary – $6.1 million ($327.8 million total, $655.8 million WW)
8. Hokum – $3.3 million ($12.5 million total, $14.3 million WW)
9. Deep Water – $780,000 ($3.7 million total, $3.7 million WW)
10. Animal Farm – $664,000 ($5 million total, $5 million WW)