Newcomers Arrival and Almost Christmas did better than expected.
Topping the box office for the second weekend in a row is Marvel-Disney’s Doctor Strange with $43 million, bringing its domestic total to $153 million. Fox’s Trolls followed in second place, as expected, with an additional $35.1 million to its $94 million domestic haul.
“Escapism seemed to be the order of the day,” said Jeff Bock, a box office analyst with Exhibitor Relations. “I think people wanted to step outside of the world of politics and get back to some semblance of normalcy.”
The weekend’s first newcomer is Paramount’s Arrival, which surprised with a strong $24 million debut from 2,317 locations, landing in third place on the charts. Moviegoers – who were 52 percent male and 85 percent over the age of 25 – gave the alien invasion thriller a B CinemaScore, while critics gave it a strong 93 percent “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes.
“The critics have been raving about this thing for months,” said Kyle Davies, Paramount’s distribution head. “Sometimes the best advertisement for the movie is the movie itself.”
Arrival – directed by Denis Villeneuve – centers on a dozen mysterious alien ships touching down on Earth, and it stars Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker, Michael Stuhlbarg and Tzi Ma.
Following in fourth place is Universal’s new holiday release, Almost Christmas, which debuted to a solid $15.6 million across 2,376 locations.
Directed by David E. Talbert, the comedy follows the story of a dysfunctional family who gather together for the holidays after their mother passes. The cast includes Kimberly Elise, Omar Epps, Danny Glover, Romany Malco, Mo’Nique, Nicole Ari Parker, J.B. Smoove, Gabrielle Union, Jessie Usher and DC Young Fly.
Moviegoers were 56 percent female and 60 percent over the age of 25 – giving the film an A-minus CinemaScore, while critics gave it a 43 percent “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes.
“It’s highly relatable,” said Nick Carpou, Universal’s domestic distribution chief. “The message about families and reunions, and sharing the good and the bad with each other, and how that makes us stronger, appeals to a lot of people.”
Rounding out the top five is Lionsgate’s Hacksaw Ridge with $10.8 million, bringing the war drama’s total to $32.3 million.
The weekend’s final wide release includes EuropaCorp’s Shut In, debuting with $3.7 million from 2,058 locations and landing in seventh place. The film, starring Naomi Watts, cost $10 million to produce and earned a C CinemaScore from audiences.
Top 10 Films at Weekend Box Office: November 11-13
- Doctor Strange – $43 million
- Trolls – $35 million
- Arrival – $24 million
- Almost Christmas – $15.6 million
- Hacksaw Ridge – $10.8 million
- The Accountant – $4.6 million
- Shut In – $3.7 million
- Boo! A Madea Halloween – $3.6 million
- Jack Reacher: Never Go Back – $3.3 million
- Inferno – $3.25 million
