"Badlands" is helping to boost a box office that had been struggling, especially in October with films like "Tron: Ares" and "The Smashing Machine" performing poorly.
This caused the month's total ticket sales to hit a 28-year low. November has several movies coming up, including "The Running Man," "Now You See Me 3," "Wicked: For Good," and "Zootopia 2," which are hoping to keep the momentum going. Overall, the box office is currently about 3% ahead of what it was in 2024, but that gap is getting smaller since the summer, when sales were 25% higher than last year. However, ticket sales are still about 20% lower than they were before the pandemic.
Paul Dergarabedian, head of marketplace trends at Comscore, says "Predator: Badlands" shows how unpredictable the box office can be.
He adds that one strong performance can help the industry regain its footing, and this film is a great start for November, which looks like it could be one of the better months for the movie business.
Before the weekend, Disney and 20th Century Studios expected "Predator: Badlands" to earn between $25 million and $30 million.
However, the film did better than expected thanks to positive reviews and strong word-of-mouth, with an "A-" grade on CinemaScore exit polls. The film was also more widely available, being rated PG-13 instead of the usual R rating for the franchise. Additionally, premium formats like Imax, Dolby, and 3D tickets, which cost more than the average ticket price, accounted for 59% of the total domestic earnings.
Internationally, "Predator: Badlands" brought in another $40 million, making its global total $80 million.
This is a promising start for a film with a $105 million budget. It's also a return to form for Disney, which has faced challenges with recent releases like "Tron: Ares" and "Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere." Looking ahead, Disney is set to dominate the box office with "Zootopia 2" and "Avatar: Fire and Ash," both of which could potentially earn over $1 billion.
Dan Trachtenberg, who previously directed "Prey" and "Predator: Killer of Killers," returned to direct "Predator: Badlands."
This film is a standalone story about an alien hunter (played by Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) and his unexpected ally (Elle Fanning) as they go on a dangerous mission to defeat a menacing enemy. Peter Debruge, chief film critic at Variety, praised the film as the most interesting and strongest "Predator" film since the 1987 original.
"Predator: Badlands" easily took the top spot over several new releases, including Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson's psychodrama "Die My Love," Rami Malek's historical drama "Nuremberg," Sydney Sweeney's boxing biopic "Christy," and Amazon MGM's inspirational true story "Sarah's Oil."
These other films mainly targeted older audiences or those who prefer arthouse cinema. Some of these films performed better than others.
"Sarah's Oil" had the best start among new releases, making $4.5 million from 2,410 theaters and placing fourth in the domestic charts.
This feel-good film, about a young Black girl who discovers oil on her land and becomes a millionaire at age 11, received a rare "A+" grade on CinemaScore exit polls.
"Nuremberg" came in fifth with $4.1 million from 1,802 theaters.
The film, directed by Sony Pictures Classics, follows a psychiatrist (Rami Malek) who must determine if the Nazi Hermann Göring (Russell Crowe) should be tried at the Nuremberg trials. While critics gave the film a 68% score on Rotten Tomatoes, audiences rated it 95%.
"Die My Love" did not do as well, making $2.8 million from 1,983 theaters and placing eighth.
This is not a bad number, but considering Mubi paid $24 million for distribution rights, it's less impressive. The film, directed by Lynne Ramsay, is not connecting with mainstream audiences and received a "D+" CinemaScore grade, which isn't surprising for a film that's both polarizing and unsettling. Jennifer Lawrence is praised for her performance as a mother suffering from postpartum depression.
"Christy," starring Sydney Sweeney as boxing trailblazer Christy Martin, didn't benefit from the star power either.
The R-rated sports drama, the first theatrical release by Black Bear Pictures, made just $1.3 million from 2,011 theaters, placing 11th.
Second place went to "Regretting You" with $7.1 million from 3,196 locations, down 8% from the previous weekend.
The Paramount adaptation of Colleen Hoover's novel has managed to stay strong, making $38.5 million domestically and $70.9 million globally after three weekends.
"Black Phone 2" dropped to third place with $5.3 million from 2,943 venues in its third weekend.
That's only a 36% drop from the previous weekend. So far, the Universal and Blumhouse sequel has grossed $70 million in the U.S. and $120 million worldwide. In comparison, the original "Black Phone" made $90 million domestically and $170 million globally.
In limited release, Neon's family drama "Sentimental Value" earned $200,000 from four theaters in New York and Los Angeles, averaging $50,000 per theater.
That's the third-highest screen average of the year and among the top 15 of post-pandemic times. The film, directed by Joachim Trier, stars Stellan Skarsgård and Renate Reinsve as a father (an eccentric filmmaker) and daughter (a successful actress) who reunite after many years of estrangement.
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