Universal’s Furious 7 raked in an additional $29.1 million in its third weekend of release, dominating the top spot once more.
The film stands at $294.4 million, quickly nearing the $300 million mark domestically; globally, Furious 7 has passed the $1 billion mark, becoming the seventh highest-grossing film of all time.
“This is how you build a record year,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Rentrak. “These are summer-style numbers in April.”
Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 performed better than expected, taking in $24 million across 3,633 locations, in comparison to the $20 million analysts predicted. The first installment debuted to $31.8 million back in 2009.
“It was a little scary to be in [‘Furious 7’s’] wake, but that Blart is tough stuff,” said Rory Bruer, Sony’s distribution chief. “We exceeded expectations and held our ground despite this juggernaut.”
Kevin James on Mall Cop 2: “It’s Easier Doing a Sequel”
Directed by Andy Fickman and co-produced by Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison, Mall Cop 2 co-stars Raini Rodriguez, Neal McDonough and Shirley Knight. The comedy film, which brought back Kevin James, received a B minus on CinemaScore from moviegoers, and a harsh 0 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes from critics.
“This movie is about having fun and having some laughs with the whole family, and it delivers on that,” said Bruer. “If critics don’t get that, I guess maybe they needed to see it with an audience or bring their kids.”
The weekend’s other wide release was Universal’s horror film Unfriended, scoring $16 million across 2,739 theaters. The $1 million-production, produced by Jason Blum, earned a 65 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which is better than the $12 million range analysts previously predicted.
“It’s a very cool concept and it’s very timely,” said Nicholas Carpou, Universal’s president of domestic distribution. “Our marketing really emphasized the digital realm, which helped us reach our core audience.”
Following in fourth and fifth place is Fox’s Home and The Longest Ride, with $10.3 million and $6.9 million, respectively. Since it’s debut last month, Home has accumulated $142.6 million domestically, while The Longest Ride gathered $23.5 million.
Top 10 Films at Weekend Box Office: April 17-19
- Furious 7— $29.1 million
- Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 — $24 million
- Unfriended — $16 million
- Home — $10.3 million
- The Longest Ride — $6.9 million
- Get Hard — $4.83 million
- Monkey Kingdom — $4.72 million
- Woman In Gold — $4.9 Million
- Divergent Series: The Insurgent— $4.2 million
- Cinderella — $3.9 Million
