The weekend box office is always a battleground for films to attract audiences and secure their spot in the top rankings. However, this weekend has seen some unexpected twists and turns, with the highly anticipated Marvel Studios film Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania facing a potential historic decline in its second weekend.
The Battle for Box Office Glory Gets Fierce: Ant-Man 3 in Trouble
Marvel fans may be disappointed to hear that Ant-Man 3, starring Paul Rudd, is facing a significant decline in box office numbers. Despite opening to a strong $120 million over the four-day Presidents Day weekend, the movie is projected to suffer a decline of 71.6 percent in its second weekend, bringing its domestic box office earnings to just over $30 million.
If this happens, it would be one of the worst declines ever for a superhero movie that opened with $100 million or more at the domestic box office.
Superhero films that open with $100 million or more rarely experience a decline of 70 percent or more in their second weekend. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice came close with a 69.1 percent decline, while Thor: Love and Thunder had the biggest decline among Marvel Cinematic Universe titles at 67.7 percent. The final Harry Potter film, released in 2011, holds the record for the biggest second-weekend drop with a decline of 72 percent among any movie that opened with $100 million or more.
Ant-Man 3 had poor word of mouth and competition from the new release Cocaine Bear are both contributing factors to the decline in numbers. The latter is a dark comedy about a drug smuggling operation gone wrong, where a 500-pound bear ingests a duffel bag of cocaine and goes on a killing spree in a small Georgia town.
Directed by Elizabeth Banks, Cocaine Bear is stealing away younger adult viewers. The movie even beat Ant-Man 3 on its opening Friday, grossing $8.7 million versus $8.3 million.
From a Bear on a Rampage to a Revivalist Movement: A Look at the Other Films Challenging Ant-Man 3
The premise of the movie is based on a true story. Yes, you read that right. Cocaine Bear is inspired by a true story. In 1985, a 175-pound black bear named Pablo reportedly ate a stash of cocaine dropped by a drug smuggler in Georgia.
The bear later died from an overdose, and its body was preserved and is now on display at the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History.
The movie has a star-studded team behind it. Apart from being directed by Elizabeth Banks, Cocaine Bear has a talented team of producers, including Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Max Handelman, Brian Duffield, and Aditya Sood. Lord and Miller are known for their work on the animated hit movies The Lego Movie and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
In addition to Cocaine Bear, another movie is opening ahead of expectations. Lionsgate and Kingdom Story Company’s Jesus Revolution, a faith-based feature inspired by true events, is expected to come in at a strong No. 3 with as much as $14 million to $15 million. The movie boasts a glowing A+ CinemaScore and earned $6.95 million on Friday, including an estimated $3.3 million from early screenings on Wednesday and Thursday.
While Ant-Man 3 may be facing a significant decline at the box office, the success of Cocaine Bear and Jesus Revolution shows that there is still a diverse range of movies catering to different audiences. It’s important to remember that box office numbers are just one aspect of a movie’s success, and that movies can still have a significant impact even if they don’t make it big at the box office.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
