Alex Garland’s dystopian thriller action movie ‘Civil War’ not only grossed an impressive $25.7 million in its debut this weekend but also marked A24’s biggest opening to date and the first to top the charts in North America, setting a record for the New York-based specialty studio’s opening weekend.
As the weekend approached, ‘Civil War’ was anticipated to debut with a respectable $15 to $20 million. However, the movie defied all expectations, surpassing all execution with its remarkable grossing. ‘Civil War’, a $50 million movie about a divided America, is a significant stride for A24 as they venture into producing larger-scale films. This is their most expensive production to date.
There is a clear divide in opinions regarding the movie, with moviegoers giving it only a B- CinemaScore. A24 has already sold the rights to foreign markets, which will help the studio recover its investment even before the movie is released in North America. The studio reported that “Civil War” performed well in markets like Los Angeles and El Paso, Texas (where coincidentally, those states lead the so-called secessionist “Western Forces” in the movie).
The story follows Kirsten Dunst, a wartime photojournalist, and her colleagues as they embark on a journey across a hostile United States of America, which has been torn apart under the authoritarian rule of the three-term president (played by Nick Offerman).
This past weekend saw only one new release, “Civil War,” with several holdovers making up the rest of the box office charts. After two weekends in the top position, Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment’s monster tentpole “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” dropped to second place, adding $15.4 million in its third weekend for a domestic total of $157.9 million.
Followed by Sony’s “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire”, which remains at No.3 place with $5.3 million. It generated $96 million at the domestic box office and $160 million worldwide.
Universal and DreamWorks Animation’s latest film, “Kung Fu Panda 4,” has moved up to the No.4 spot in the box office with $5.2 million in its sixth weekend. It hit $173 million in North America and over $452 million globally.
Meanwhile, “Dune: Part Two” added $74.3 million in its seventh weekend of release, rounding out the top five. The sci-fi epic has amassed $272 million in North America and $683 million globally, making it the highest-grossing film of the year.
