Box Office Report: The Calm Before The Sand Worms

Box Office analysis is provided by Daniel Garris of BoxOfficeReport.com.

Weekend Box Office Report: February 23rd, 2024 to February 25th, 2024

In what was very much a quiet before the storm weekend before Warner Bros. and Legendary's highly anticipated Dune: Part Two arrives next weekend, Paramount's Bob Marley: One Love was able to hold off Sony and Crunchyroll's Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba - To the Hashira Training to remain in first place. This weekend's box office race between Bob Marley: One Love and the latest Demon Slayer release did end up being much closer than had been widely expected heading into the weekend.

Paramount's Bob Marley: One Love took in $13.46 million in its second weekend of release. While Bob Marley: One Love has gone over well with audiences, the film was still down a sizable 53.0 percent from last weekend's break-out three-day opening weekend performance. In the bigger picture, Bob Marley: One Love has grossed a healthy $71.15 million through twelve days of domestic release. Bob Marley: One Love will soon surpass the $72.13 million current total domestic gross of fellow Paramount release Mean Girls to become the highest grossing release of 2024 to date domestically, though obviously Dune: Part Two is expected to zoom past Bob Marley: One Love not too long after being released. Internationally, Bob Marley: One Love grossed an estimated $15.0 million this weekend from 59 international markets. That brings the film's international total to $49.4 million and current global haul to $120.5 million. Totals for Bob Marley: One Love by international market through Sunday include $14.3 million in the United Kingdom, $9.7 million in France, $3.2 million in Germany, $3.1 million in Australia and $3.0 million in Brazil.

Sony and Crunchyroll's Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba - To the Hashira Training started out in second place with $11.50 million. The latest theatrical release consisting of episodes from the Demon Slayer anime television series opened on the very high end of consensus expectations and outpaced the estimated $10.12 million start of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – To the Swordsmith Village back in March of last year. Like To the Hashira Training, To the Swordsmith Village was also a collection of episodes from the Demon Slayer anime series. Typically a release like To the Hashira Training would have opened below its predecessor, but To the Hashira Training was able to open higher thanks in part to having a few advantages that To the Swordsmith Village didn't have, including opening having Thursday previews shows, having some IMAX showtimes (To the Hashira Training grossed an estimated $1.1 million from domestic IMAX screens) and not opening on a weekend with a new release the size of Creed III. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba - To the Hashira Training looks to be going over fairly well with audiences, as the release received a solid B+ rating on CinemaScore. Internationally, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba - To the Hashira Training grossed an estimated $13.7 million this weekend from 43 international markets being handled by Sony. This weekend's international performance was led by a $4.5 million start in Mexico.
Lionsgate's Ordinary Angels debuted in third place this weekend with $6.16 million. The Jon Gunn directed drama starring Hilary Swank and Alan Ritchson opened right in line with the modest consensus expectations for the film heading into the weekend. Ordinary Angels has gone over well with critics and looks to be going over especially with audiences after receiving a perfect A+ rating on CinemaScore. That is a good early sign for the film going forward; though at the same time it may still prove difficult for Ordinary Angels to hold onto locations and showtimes given the amount of high profile films opening in theatres this March.

Sony's Madame Web was down two spots and a sharp 61.4 percent from last weekend to land in fourth place this weekend with $5.92 million. The lackluster second weekend hold didn't come as a surprise given the poor critical reviews and mixed word of mouth for the latest installment of Sony's Spider-Man Universe. The twelve-day domestic total for Madame Web stands at just $35.36 million. That is 38.1 percent behind the $57.08 million 2022's Morbius grossed through its first ten days of release (that film opened on a Friday). Madame Web will likely experience another sharp decline next weekend, especially with the film losing the remainder of its IMAX showtimes to Dune: Part Two. Internationally, Madame Web grossed an estimated $10.5 million this weekend from 64 international markets. Respective totals for Madame Web stand at $42.0 million internationally and at $77.4 million globally.

As for some of this weekend's other holdovers, Universal and Illumination's Migration declined 24.9 percent to place in fifth with $2.87 million, Universal and Apple's Argylle decreased 44.0 percent to follow in sixth with $2.74 million and Warner's Bros.'s Wonka was down 30.1 percent to place in seventh with $2.46 million. Respective total domestic grosses stand at $214.47 million for Wonka through 73 days, at $120.32 million for Migration through 66 days and at a relatively modest $41.63 million for Argylle through 24 days. Internationally, Wonka grossed $5.5 million this weekend from 70 international markets, which brings the film's international total to $403.4 million and global total to $617.8 million. Migration grossed $5.2 million this weekend from 79 international markets, for an international total of $148.6 million and current global haul of $268.9 million. And Argylle grossed $3.5 million from 82 international markets (including a debut of just $1.4 million in China), which brings the film's international total to $44.8 million and global total to $86.4 million.

This weekend also saw Focus's Drive-Away Dolls debut in eighth place with $2.40 million. The Ethan Coen directed comedy starring Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan opened towards the lower end of already low consensus expectations. While anticipation was always modest for Drive-Away Dolls, the film's somewhat surprising fairly mixed critical reviews didn't help matters. Drive-Away Dolls appears to be going over similarly with audiences as it has with critics, given the film's modest C rating on CinemaScore.

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