On a lighter note, This is Where I Leave You left audiences mostly cold with a mediocre third-place opening of $11.9 million. The star-studded cast and a lot of buzz from the Toronto film festival could not create much excitement, especially when reviews of the Jonathan Tropper adaptations came out less than enthusiastic. (It is currently at a measly 43% on Rotten Tomatoes.)
The comedy-drama, starring Jason Bateman, Tina Fey and a plethora of other actors from your favorite TV shows, may have also felt a bit too reminiscent of August: Osage County, which had mixed word-of-mouth earlier this year. On the bright side, this could have a decent stay in theatres, as there is not much currently aimed at female audiences, which boasted a reported 63% of the crowds this weekend. With a reported budget of under $20 million, this should not be too concerning for Warner Bros.
Rounding out the top five were last weekend’s openers, which dropped quite a bit due to hefty competition from the new releases. The home invasion thriller No Good Deed dropped 58% on its sophomore weekend to take $10.2 million and fourth place. The low-budget film has a $40.1 million cume so far and could finish with around $55 million or so. Dolphin Tale 2, meanwhile, is not living up to its predecessor solid box office run. Dipping 43% from its opening, the family drama brought in another $9 million this weekend for fifth position. In comparison, its predecessor jumped to #1 on its second weekend, with a $13.9 gross. With just $27 million so far and competition from The Boxtrolls coming next weekend, Dolphin Tale 2 should only swim to a $45 million final.
In other news, Kevin Smith’s horror comedy Tusk had a dim opening in limited release, debuting outside of the top 10. With $886,000 in 602 theaters, this is another much-buzzed film for A24 that ends up with a disappointing box office run. Its highest earner this year, Obvious Child, has just earned $3.1 million. (Do not expect Tusk to get much higher than that in its theatrical run, although it could do well on DVD or Netflix.) We shall see if A24’s future releases Laggies and A Most Violent Year can turn the studio’s fortunes around.
Here are the box office estimates for the Top 10 films at the North American box office, the weekend of September 19 through 21, 2014:
1. The Maze Runner – $32.5 million (NEW)
2. A Walk Among the Tombstones – $13.1 million (NEW)
3. This is Where I Leave You – $11.9 million (NEW)
4. No Good Deed – $10.2 million ($40.1 million total)
5. Dolphin Tale 2 – $9 million ($27.1 million total)
6. Guardians of the Galaxy – $5.2 million ($313.7 million total)
7. Let’s Be Cops – $2.7 million ($77.2 million total)
8. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – $2.7 million ($185 million total)
9. The Drop – $2.1 million ($7.7 million total)
10. If I Stay – $1.8 million ($47.7 million total)
NOTE: These numbers are weekend estimates based on Friday and Saturday’s estimated takes. Actual numbers for the three-day weekend are reported on Monday afternoon.