Star Wars: Episode VIII -- The Last Jedi is giving movie-theater chains a new hope for 2018.
Disney's latest chapter in the Star Wars saga became the year's No. 1-grossing movie after generating about $67 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters over the four-day holiday weekend, said researcher ComScore Inc. The film's domestic total of $531 million for 2017 topped the $504 million tallied by the previous No. 1, Disney's Beauty and the Beast. Worldwide, it has pulled in at least $1.04 billion.
The success of Jedi, combined with a surprising two-week run from Columbia's Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, is encouraging for Hollywood, which has been through a brutal year of big-budget bombs and competitive threats. The box office in the United States, the world's biggest movie market, finished the year down 2.4 percent to $11.2 billion, but the latest hits prove it's possible to lure viewers away from their Netflix accounts.
Columbia has shown some moxie with Jumanji, a remake of the 1995 Robin Williams fantasy. In its second weekend in theaters, where The Last Jedi is playing on multiple screens in many locations, the action-comedy starring Dwayne Johnson generated $66.3 million over the four-day holiday break, according to ComScore.
The rest of the top five at the box office remain in stasis from the weekend before.
Universal's Pitch Perfect 3 lands at No. 3. The latest a cappella adventure of the Bellas earned about $22 million, bringing the film's cumulative gross to $68 million in its second weekend of release. In comparison, Pitch Perfect 2 earned $69.2 million during its opening weekend in 2015.
Fox's The Greatest Showman is holding strong at No. 4 at the box office, grossing more over the New Year's holiday than it did in its first weekend of release. The tale of P.T. Barnum starring Hugh Jackman grossed about $21 million through Monday.
Fox's Ferdinand held steady in its third weekend of release, earning about $15 million Friday through Monday, good enough for a top five finish at the box office.
Coco, the latest offering from Disney's Pixar, continues to score at home and abroad. Landing at No. 6 at the weekend box office, the film earned about $10 million in its sixth week of release, bringing its domestic cumulative gross to $182 million. Combined with an estimated international gross of $359 million, Coco's global box-office take stands at an estimated $537.9 million through Monday.
All the Money in the World landed at No. 7 in its first full weekend of release. The true story of the kidnapping of J. Paul Getty's grandson opened Christmas Day and earned $7.2 million Friday through Monday. The Columbia picture starring Christopher Plummer as a late substitute for a role Kevin Spacey had already filmed has grossed $14.3 million.
Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill continues to perform. Focus Features' Darkest Hour added about $7 million to its box office gross through Monday, bringing its domestic cumulative gross to about $20 million in its fifth weekend of release.
Paramount's quirky comedy Downsizing, centered around shrinking humans to combat overpopulation, continues to have undersized box-office earnings. Directed by Alexander Payne and starring Matt Damon, the film earned $6.2 million through Monday in its second week of release. Downsizing has cumulatively grossed about $19 million.
Finally, rounding out the top 10 is Warner Bros.' Father Figures, starring Owen Wilson and Ed Helms. The critically ravaged comedy about fraternal twins in search of their biological father earned about $5 million in its second weekend of release, bringing its cumulative gross to about $14 million.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Monday, followed by distribution studio, gross, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Tuesday by comScore:
Star Wars: Episode VIII -- The Last Jedi, Disney, $66,813,601, 4,232 locations, $15,788 average, $531,511,829, 3 weeks.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Columbia, $66,273,753, 3,765 locations, $17,603 average, $185,224,946, 2 weeks.
Pitch Perfect 3, Universal, $21,676,000, 3,468 locations, $6,250 average, $68,166,470, 2 weeks.
The Greatest Showman, 20th Century Fox, $20,906,547, 3,316 locations, $6,305 average, $54,422,533, 2 weeks.
Ferdinand, 20th Century Fox, $14,852,368, 3,337 locations, $4,451 average, $57,012,473, 3 weeks.
Coco, Disney, $10,083,054, 2,104 locations, $4,792 average, $182,455,513, 6 weeks.
All the Money in the World, Columbia, $7,214,936, 2,074 locations, $3,479 average, $14,342,632,1 week.
Darkest Hour, Focus Features, $7,010,765, 943 locations, $7,435 average, $19,658,052, 6 weeks.
Downsizing, Paramount, $6,248,716, 2,664 locations, $2,346 average, $18,707,081, 2 weeks.
Father Figures, Warner Bros., $4,966,173, 2,902 locations, $1,711 average, $14,030,095, 2 weeks.
The Shape of Water, Fox Searchlight, $4,723,305, 756 locations, $6,248 average, $16,863,460, 5 weeks.
Wonder, Lionsgate, $4,270,824, 1,193 locations, $3,580 average, $122,579,689, 7 weeks.
Molly's Game, STX Entertainment, $3,110,069, 271 locations, $11,476 average, $6,137,582, 1 week.
Lady Bird, A24, $1,901,467, 392 locations, $4,851 average, $31,867,480, 9 weeks.
Justice League, Warner Bros., $1,564,203, 1,215 locations, $1,287 average, $225,913,169, 7 weeks.
The Disaster Artist, A24, $1,241,322, 507 locations, $2,448 average, $18,170,124, 5 weeks.
Tiger Zinda Hai, Yash Raj Films, $1,227,405, 284 locations, $4,322 average, $4,878,546, 2 weeks.
Daddy's Home 2, Paramount, $1,202,123, 770 locations, $1,561 average, $102,071,930, 8 weeks.
Thor: Ragnarok, Disney, $1,129,887, 540 locations, $2,092 average, $311,500,126, 9 weeks.
Call Me By Your Name, Sony Pictures Classics, $998,105, 115 locations, $8,679 average, $4,906,868, 6 weeks.
MovieStyle on 01/05/2018