Though not quite the behemoth thatDeadpoolproved to be when it premiered to a staggering $132 million opening weekend,Loganis making a strong case that R-rated superhero films are in vogue. The count so far hasLogancoming in with $85.3 million for the entire weekend, including late-night showings on Thursday, which would put it just a hair above the opening weekend take of Marvel’sDoctor Strangefrom last year. One should expect Logan to arrive north ofStrange’s total gross of some $232 million by the end of its time in theaters, if not closer toDeadpoolup in the $300 million range.
In other words, in the world of Marvel adaptations, there is now a provable metric that both giving directors likeJames MangoldandTim Millermore control over a production and allowing for blood, cursing, and other darker element in a narrative is more lucrative than the kid-gloves PG-13 route. This isn’t to say that this will necessarily make for a better movie:Doctor Strangeis a far more visually wondrous work thanDeadpooland, often enough, proved to be funnier too. But whereDoctor Strangefit into an increasingly insufferable formula that renders all Marvel narratives programmatic,LoganandDeadpoolboth feel singular, capable of standing on their own merits if producers were to ever allow them to be more than just a volume in a franchise. Of course, that will never, ever happen.
Meanwhile, belowLoganat the box office,Get Outcontinued it’s hot streak following last weekend’s victory overThe LEGO Batman Movie, which now places in fourth.Get Outtook in $26.1 million in its second frame, bringing it’s total to some $76 million from a budget that cost under $5 million to make. In comparison, the faith-based nonsenseathonThe Shackcost $26 million to make and came in with a still-admirable $16.1 million, placing in squarely in third place aboveLEGO Batman’s $11.6 take in fourth place.John Wick: Chapter 2rounded the top five out with $4.7 million but for me, the top two tell the story of the modern box office succinctly: an anticipated blockbuster that cost $96 million to make and needs to make a few hundred million to show a real profit, and a riskier small release made forLogan’s catering budget that has already likely recouped all its expenses and then some.
Weekend Box Office:
Weekend Gross
Total Gross
$85.3 million
2. Get Out
$26.1 million
$75.9 million
3. The Shack
$16.1 million
4. The LEGO Batman Movie
$11.7 million
$148 million
5. John Wick: Chapter 2
$4.7 million
$83 million
