In classicM. Night Shyamalan-ian fashion, the box office debut ofGlassis both unexpected and a little sadder than predicted. The comic book thriller starringSamuel L. Jackson,James McAvoy, and a nappingBruce Willisopened up to $16 million—including $3.7 million in Thursday night previews—putting it on track to take in around $45-50 million over the four-day Martin Luther King weekend. This haul is below the $60-70 million range originally expected, which would have easily handedGlassthe second-best MLK opening behindAmerican Sniper’s 2015 $107 million take.
That second place distinction currently belongs toRide Along—$48.6 million in 2014—so whileGlass' odds aren’t exactly unbreakable (shut up) it still has a super-strong fighting chance.
Glasscompletes a trilogy that Shyamalan started all the way back in 2000 withUnbreakable, followed up in the very last moments of 2016’sSplit. Reaction to the film and its endless parade of twists has been divided; I wastorn betweenloving it and hating it, while our own Matt Goldberg wasabitharsher. Audiences gave the film a B Cinemascore, which is, again, pretty much right down the middle. Financially, though, Glass is already on its way to being a hit. Financed largely by Shyamalan himself, the film boasts a modest $20 million budget.
The biggest surprise of the weekend wasn’t anythingGlasscooked up, though, it wasDragon Ball Super: Broly, which took in $2.4 million on Friday night, beatingSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse($1.7 million) for fourth place. The animated action flick debuted to a stellar $7 million on 1,250 screens Wednesday night, hauling in $12.8 million total so far.
The UpsidestarringKevin HartandBryan Cranstondropped to second place with a $4.1 million Friday night, while the worldwide billion-dollar earnerAquamanrounded out the top three with $2.5 million.
Take a look at Friday’s numbers below and check back tomorrow for full weekend estimates. (Numbers viaBox Office Mojo)
$16,000,000
The Upside
$4,170,000
$32,483,439
$2,510,000
$296,516,848
Dragon Ball Super: Broly
$2,397,442
$12,817,471
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
$1,760,000
$152,761,385
