Tim Burton’s remake of “Dumbo” is estimated to open just below Disney’s projections of a $50 million launch. After grossing $15.2 million from 4,259 screens on Friday, the film is now estimated to earn a $47.6 million domestic opening.
By comparison, the 2014 remake of “Cinderella,” which also opened in March, scored an opening weekend of $67 million. “Dumbo” did receive an A- from audiences on CinemaScore, but with a 52 percent Rotten Tomatoes score and 3.5 stars from general audience polls on Postrak, this reported $170 million blockbuster isn’t likely to post much of a profit, especially with “Shazam” entering theaters next weekend as heavy competition for family audiences.
In second is Universal/Monkeypaw’s “Us,” which is estimated for a second weekend total of $33.5 million. That would be a 53 percent drop from the film’s $71 million opening, which was the best opening for a live-action original movie since “Avatar” in December 2009.
While “Us” isn’t showing the incredible holds that Jordan Peele’s “Get Out” demonstrated two years ago, it is still performing better than most horror films, which see a second weekend drop of over 60 percent. It’s also looking at a result slightly above the second weekend of last October’s “Halloween,” which made $31 million in its second frame after opening to $76.2 million.
“Captain Marvel” is in third with $20 million in its fourth weekend, pushing its domestic total past $350 million. The Marvel movie came into the weekend with $940 million worldwide, and may pass the $1 billion mark by Sunday, depending on overseas receipts.
In fourth is Pure Flix’s pro-life film “Unplanned,” which tells the true story of a former Planned Parenthood clinic director who became an anti-abortion activist after working there for eight years. With an estimated $7.2 million opening from 1,059 screens, the film sits just behind “God’s Not Dead 2” ($7.6 million) as Pure Flix’s second-highest opening ever, and could take a new studio record depending on Saturday numbers. The film has a 58 percent Rotten Tomatoes score.
Completing the top five is CBS Films/Lionsgate’s with an estimated $6.2 million in its third weekend, which would bring its total to $35.8 million. Farther down the charts, Universal’s “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” will pass the $150 million mark in its sixth weekend with $4.1 million.
In eighth is Bleecker Street’s “Hotel Mumbai,” a true story thriller starring Dev Patel and Armie Hammer that the studio acquired following the bankruptcy of The Weinstein Company. After its limited opening in New York and Los Angeles last weekend, the film has expanded to 924 screens nationwide and is projected for a $3.1 million wide opening.
Finally, NEON released Harmony Korine’s “The Beach Bum” on 1,015 screens, but the film is tanking with an estimated $1.7 million opening. That stands as the lowest wide release opening ever for lead star Matthew McConaughey, with the film also receiving mixed reviews from its SXSW premiere with a 52 percent Rotten Tomatoes score.