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㽶ƵֱAlien: Romulus㽶Ƶֱ bites off $41.5 million to top box office charts

Reviews have been mixed but mostly positive
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Cailee Spaeny arrives at the premiere of 㽶ƵֱAlien: Romulus㽶Ƶֱ on Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP)

㽶ƵֱAlien: Romulus,㽶Ƶֱ the latest installment in the 45-year-old franchise, opened in first place at the North American box office. The 20th Century Studios release earned an estimated $41.5 million in its first weekend, where it was playing in 3,885 locations in the U.S. and Canada.

Including $66.7 million from international showings in 49 markets, 㽶ƵֱAlien: Romulus㽶Ƶֱ boasted a $108.2 million global debut. The Walt Disney Co., which owns 20th Century Studios, claimed the top two spots on the charts, with Marvel㽶Ƶֱs 㽶Ƶֱ Deadpool & Wolverine 㽶Ƶֱ now in its fourth weekend, taking second place with $29 million. The company has been responsible for an estimated 42% of the industry㽶Ƶֱs summer box office haul, including hits 㽶ƵֱInside Out 2㽶Ƶֱ and 㽶ƵֱKingdom of the Planet of the Apes.㽶Ƶֱ

August can often be slow for the movie business, or, less charitably, a dumping ground. But while 2024 has lagged overall for the movie business, a string of recent hits including 㽶ƵֱDeadpool & Wolverine㽶Ƶֱ and 㽶ƵֱIt Ends With Us㽶Ƶֱ helped build a momentum that put this late August weekend over 30% ahead of the same weekend last year. It㽶Ƶֱs also up over 10% from August 2019.

㽶ƵֱThe summer started off pretty gloomy, but it㽶Ƶֱs winding up really strong,㽶Ƶֱ said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore. 㽶ƵֱWe thought we were going to coast through August, but now we㽶Ƶֱre powering through August towards a much better overall summer number than we expected for the box office.㽶Ƶֱ

Fede Álvarez directed 㽶ƵֱAlien: Romulus,㽶Ƶֱ set around the time of 㽶ƵֱAlien㽶Ƶֱ and 㽶ƵֱAliens,㽶Ƶֱ and recruited a cast of up-and-coming 20-somethings to lead the cast including Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson and Isabela Merced. The sci-fi film leans into Álvarez㽶Ƶֱs propensity for all things horror, as he is known for 㽶ƵֱEvil Dead㽶Ƶֱ and 㽶ƵֱDon㽶Ƶֱt Breathe,㽶Ƶֱ and embraces the franchise㽶Ƶֱs horror roots.

Reviews have been a little mixed, but mostly positive, with an 81% on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences gave it a B+ CinemaScore.

The romantic drama 㽶Ƶֱ It Ends With Us 㽶Ƶֱ landed in third place with $24 million, down just 52% from its triumphant opening. The Sony movie starring Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, who also directed, has made $97.8 million to date. It cost only $25 million to produce.

The film was adapted from the bestselling Colleen Hoover novel of the same name that follows Lively as Lily Bloom, a woman at a crossroads when a past love upends her current relationship with Baldoni㽶Ƶֱs Ryle Kincaid.

Rumors of behind-the-scenes drama on the film also continues to dominate social media discourse and tabloid headlines 㽶Ƶֱ but 㽶ƵֱDon㽶Ƶֱt Worry Darling㽶Ƶֱ also taught us that gossip and chatter don㽶Ƶֱt always translate to box office returns.

㽶ƵֱTwisters㽶Ƶֱ placed fourth in its fifth weekend with $9.8 million from 3,483 theaters. The Universal release has made over $238.4 million domestically.

Rounding out the top five was a re-release: 㽶ƵֱCoraline,㽶Ƶֱ which Fathom Events put on over 1,500 screens for its 15th anniversary where it made $11.3 million in four days and $8.6 million from Friday through Sunday. The stop-motion animated film was an adaptation of a Neil Gaiman novella, written and directed by Henry Selick and marked the first-ever release for Laika. It㽶Ƶֱll be in theaters until Aug. 22.

㽶ƵֱBorderlands,㽶Ƶֱ the video game adaptation starring Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart and Jamie Lee Curtis, brought in $2.4 million in its second weekend bringing its total box office earnings to $13.5 million compared to its reported $120 million budget.

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Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. 㽶ƵֱAlien: Romulus,㽶Ƶֱ $41.5 million.

2. 㽶ƵֱDeadpool & Wolverine,㽶Ƶֱ $29 million.

3. 㽶ƵֱIt Ends With Us,㽶Ƶֱ $24 million.

4. 㽶ƵֱTwisters,㽶Ƶֱ $9.8 million.

5. 㽶ƵֱCoraline,㽶Ƶֱ $8.6 million.

6. 㽶ƵֱDespicable Me 4,㽶Ƶֱ $6 million.

7. 㽶ƵֱTrap,㽶Ƶֱ $3.4 million.

8. 㽶ƵֱInside Out 2,㽶Ƶֱ $3.2 million.

9. 㽶ƵֱBorderlands,㽶Ƶֱ $2.4 million.

10. 㽶ƵֱStree 2,㽶Ƶֱ $2.2 million.

Lindsey Bahr And Kaitlyn Huamani, The Associated Press

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