The further into May theaters get, the more crowded they will become as more tentpole films vie for space at an increasingly busy box office. It didn't seem to matter for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, though, as the film managed to outpace its opening weekend projections in its climb to the number one spot.
Heading into its opening weekend, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes was projected to make between $50 and $55 million at the domestic box office. It managed to just outpace its projections with an estimated $56.5 million for the opening weekend to kick off Apes' theatrical run in successful fashion, according to Variety.
This makes Kingdom the second-best domestic opening in the reboot series of films behind Dawn of the Planet of the Apes' $72 million opening in 2014.
It's success wasn't limited to North America, either, as Kingdom opened internationally to an estimated $72.5 million for an worldwide haul of $129 million. With a reported budget of $160 million, Kingdom looks well on its way to being a success for Disney and its 20th Century Studios division.
“The weekend figure is roughly average for the genre, but average here is based on the biggest action films of all time,” consultant David Gross told Variety. “This is an excellent opening.”
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes also has another week to pad its box office before the release of Furiosa, which is expected to open at number one when it releases on May 24. The latest entry in the Mad Max universe is projected to open between $40 and $50 million as it will be facing competition from the animated world with The Garfield Movie, itself projected to make $35 million for its domestic opening.
After Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes' success, it becomes a steep drop from the number one to number two spot.
A Steep Fall
The Fall Guy held on to that number two spot for its second weekend with another $13.7 million at the domestic box office, bringing its two week domestic total to roughly $49.6 million. With a worldwide total of $104 million in two weeks, The Fall Guy's earnings reflect concerns from its opening about the legs the Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt-led action comedy could ultimately have in theaters.
Coming in at number three is Challengers, which made another $4.6 million domestically for its third week in theaters for domestic haul of $38 million and a global haul of $68.7 million.
The fourth spot went to the supernatural horror film Tarot, also in its second weekend in theaters, with $3.4 million domestically. Tarot's worldwide total as also hit $20 million which, against a reported budget of $8 million, makes the film a success for Sony.
Rounding out the top five was Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which continues to pad the successful theatrical run it has had since releasing on March 29. The MonsterVerse film walked away with another $2.5 million for a total domestic haul of $191 million and an estimated worldwide total of $558.8 million.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is in theaters.
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