After debuting in early Thursday night, Universals spooky Ouija has earned the Top Films Spot with $8.3 Million, and on track for a $20 million weekend.
Keanu Reeves is no match for a board game, it seems. After debuting in early Thursday night showings, Universal’s spooky Ouija has earned an estimated $8.3 million, putting it on track for a $20 million weekend, while Lionsgate and Summit’s John Wick took in an estimated $5.45 million, suggesting the violent revenge pic will net out around $14 million by weekend’s close.
While Ouija, which cost Blumhouse and Platinum Dunes less than $5 million to produce, is a resounding success, $20 million is a little less impressive than the standard Blumhouse fate. The Purge and The Purge: Anarchy, for instance, opened to $34.1 and $29.1 million respectively. This is more on par with 2012’s Sinister, which had an $18 million opening weekend in mid-October and grossed $48.1 million domestically by the end of its run.
Based on exit polling data, audiences didn’t seem to like either new opener all that much, though. Critics may have loved John Wick, but it only managed to get a B CinemaScore, while Ouija, which was pretty universally loathed by reviewers, picked up a deadly C CinemaScore.
St. Vincent, meanwhile, managed to snag a spot in the top five after its nationwide expansion with an estimated $2.6 million on Friday. The Theodore Melfi comedy, starring Bill Murray and Melissa McCarthy, has played well for two weekends in limited release, and audiences gave it an A- Cinema Score.
Here’s the top five:
1. Ouija — $8.3 million
2. John Wick — $5.45 million
3. Fury — $4.1 million ($37.2 million domestic total)
4. Gone Girl — $3.5 million ($116.5 million domestic total)
5. St. Vincent — $2.6 million ($3.68 million domestic total)