Movies
Box Office Recap: Fourth of July Weekend Box Office Sizzles
Just as analysts predicted, Transformers: Age of Extinction beat Melissa McCarthy’s comedy Tammy this Fourth of July weekend with another $36.4 million from 4,233 locations, for a domestic total of $174.7 million. Michael Bay’s autobot-filled blockbuster became the first summer movie to hold on to the No. 1 spot at the box office.
Coming in second place is Tammy, which did less than expected, as analysts estimated the R-rated road trip comedy would earn at least $40 million. Instead, it grossed $21.2 million over the weekend, for a total of $32.9 million since its Wednesday release. The comedy settled behind the $39 million debut of The Heat (co-stared with Sandra Bullock), and the $34.6 million debut of McCarthy’s Identity Thief.
These low numbers contributed to the weakest Independence Day box office results in at least a decade. This holiday weekend dropped 43.4% from last year’s numbers, bringing in approximately $130 million from its previous $230 million.
“We always think of Fourth of July being a big weekend. This year, we just have to lick our wounds and look forward to ‘Planet of the Apes’ and some other films to get us back on track,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for box-office tracker Rentrak.
The film, which was produced by the comedienne and her husband Ben Falcone, received a C plus CinemaScore from audiences, as well as very poor reviews from critics (23 percent on Rotten Tomatoes).
Warner Bros. distribution chief Dan Fellman reassured that, while the numbers seem low, Tammy is off to a decent start with a “strong number two,” and predicted that the movie will ultimately end up between $80 million and $100 million.
“We’re really happy with Tammy. This was a $20-million production and it was homegrown by Melissa and her husband Ben,” said Dan Fellman, the studio’s president of domestic distribution. “It’s a nice start for us. We’re in good shape and there’s a lot of summer left.”
This week’s horror movie Deliver Us From Evil from Screen Gems earned $15 million across 3,049 locations, landing in third place. Relativity’s Earth to Echo grossed $13.5 million over its first five days, placing in sixth behind How to Train Your Dragon 2. In fifth is Sony’s cop comedy 22 Jump Street, which took in an estimated $9.4 million, for a domestic total to date of $158.8 million.
See what films made the top 10 list at the box office this weekend by clicking “Next”!
10. Edge of Tomorrow – $3.6 million
Film Synopsis
The epic action of Edge of Tomorrow unfolds in a near future in which an alien race has hit the Earth in an unrelenting assault, unbeatable by any military unit in the world. Major William Cage (Tom Cruise) is an officer who has never seen a day of combat when he is unceremoniously dropped into what amounts to a suicide mission. Killed within minutes, Cage now finds himself inexplicably thrown into a time loop-forcing him to live out the same brutal combat over and over, fighting and dying again…and again. But with each battle, Cage becomes able to engage the adversaries with increasing skill, alongside Special Forces warrior Rita Vrataski (Emily Blunt). And, as Cage and Rita take the fight to the aliens, each repeated encounter gets them one step closer to defeating the enemy.
9. Think Like a Man – $4.9 million
Film Synopsis
In the highly anticipated sequel, which was inspired by Steve Harvey’s best-selling book Act Like a Lady, Think Like A Man, all the couples are back for a wedding in Las Vegas. But plans for a romantic weekend go awry when their various misadventures get them into some compromising situations that threaten to derail the big event.
8. Jersey Boys – $5.1 million
Film Synopsis
Clint Eastwood’s big screen version of the Tony Award-winning musical tells the story of the four young men from the wrong side of the tracks in New Jersey who came together to form the iconic `60s rock group The Four Seasons. Their trials and triumphs are accompanied by the hit songs that influenced a generation, and are now being embraced by a new generation of fans through the stage musical.
7. Maleficent – $6.1 million
Film Synopsis
Maleficent explores the untold story of Disney’s most iconic villain from the classic Sleeping Beauty and the elements of her betrayal that ultimately turn her pure heart to stone. Driven by revenge and a fierce desire to protect the moors over which she presides, Maleficent cruelly places an irrevocable curse upon the human king’s newborn infant Aurora. As the child grows, Aurora is caught in the middle of the seething conflict between the forest kingdom she has grown to love and the human kingdom that holds her legacy. Maleficent realizes that Aurora may hold the key to peace in the land and is forced to take drastic actions that will change both worlds forever.
6. Earth to Echo – $8.3 million
Film Synopsis
In Relativity’s PG summer family adventure movie, Tuck, Munch and Alex are a trio of inseparable friends whose lives are about to change. Their neighborhood is being destroyed by a highway construction project that is forcing their families to move away. But just two days before they must part ways, the boys begin receiving a strange series of signals on their phones. Convinced something bigger is going on, they team up with another school friend, Emma, and set out to look for the source of their phone signals. What they discover is something beyond their wildest imaginations: a small alien who has become stranded on Earth. In need of their help, the four friends come together to protect the alien and help him find his way home. This journey, full of wonder and adventure, is their story, and their secret.
5. How to Train Your Dragon 2 – $8.8 million
Film Synopsis
DreamWorks Animation returns to the world of dragons and Vikings in this sequel to their successful 2010 outing How to Train Your Dragon. The original film followed the exploits of a Viking chief’s son, who must capture a dragon in order to mark his passage into manhood and prove his worthiness to the tribe.
4. 22 Jump Street – $9.4 million
Film Synopsis
After making their way through high school (twice), big changes are in store for officers Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Jenko (Channing Tatum) when they go deep undercover at a local college. But when Jenko meets a kindred spirit on the football team, and Schmidt infiltrates the bohemian art major scene, they begin to question their partnership. Now they don’t have to just crack the case – they have to figure out if they can have a mature relationship. If these two overgrown adolescents can grow from freshmen into real men, college might be the best thing that ever happened to them.
3. Deliver Us From Evil – $9.5 million
Film Synopsis
In Deliver Us From Evil, New York police officer Ralph Sarchie (Eric Bana), struggling with his own personal issues, begins investigating a series of disturbing and inexplicable crimes. He joins forces with an unconventional priest (Edgar Ramirez), schooled in the rituals of exorcism, to combat the frightening and demonic possessions that are terrorizing their city. Based upon the book, which details Sarchie’s bone-chilling real-life cases.
2. Tammy – $21.2 million
Film Synopsis
Tammy (Melissa McCarthy) is having a bad day. She’s totaled her clunker car, gotten fired from her thankless job at a greasy burger joint and, instead of finding comfort at home, finds her husband getting comfortable with the neighbor in her own house. It’s time to take her boom box and book it. The bad news is she’s broke and without wheels. The worse news is her grandma, Pearl (Susan Sarandon), is her only option-with a car, cash, and an itch to see Niagara Falls. Not exactly the escape Tammy had in mind. But on the road, with grandma riding shot gun, it may be just what Tammy needs.
1. Transformers: Age of Extinction – $36.4 million
Film Synopsis
Transformers: Age of Extinction begins after an epic battle left a great city torn, but with the world saved. As humanity picks up the pieces, a shadowy group reveals itself in an attempt to control the direction of history…while an ancient, powerful new menace sets Earth in its crosshairs. With help from a new cast of humans (led by Mark Wahlberg), Optimus Prime and the Autobots rise to meet their most fearsome challenge yet. In an incredible adventure, they are swept up in a war of good and evil, ultimately leading to a climactic battle across the world.