Newcomers Terminator Genisys and Magic Mike XXL failed to out-spark popular box office holdovers Inside Out and Jurassic World this Independence Day weekend, who are in their third and fourth weekends, respectively.
Universal’s Jurassic World placed in first with $30.9 million, for a cumulative domestic total of $558.2 million – the fourth-best showing of all time in North America, surpassing The Dark Knight’s $534.9 million. Disney’s Inside Out followed in second with $30.1 million for a domestic total of $246.2 million.
Finishing in third place at the box office is Paramount’s newcomer Terminator Genisys with a weekend gross of $28.7 million, for a five-day debut of $44.1 million. The action film, which cost $155 million to produce, received a B plus CinemaScore from moviegoers and a 27 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes from critics.
“The U.S. audience has definitely been taking a ‘you-have-to-impress-me’ attitude on sequels,” said Rob Moore, vice chairman of Viacom Inc.’s Paramount Pictures. He accredited the trend in part to the increasing number of high quality options on TV.
The Alan Taylor-directed film, which was made up of 62 percent male moviegoers, is the fifth installment in the fan-favorite sci-fi franchise. Genisys follows Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney), who is sent back to 1984 by John Connor (Jason Clarke) to protect Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke) and safeguard the future. An unexpected turn of events creates a fractured timeline, leading Reese, Connor and a Terminator ally (Arnold Schwarzenegger) on a mission to reset the future.
While Warner Bros.’ Magic Mike XXL hoped to take in somewhere between $45 million-$50 million, the R-rated sequel landed in fourth place with $12 million and a five-day debut of $27.1 million. Audience members, who were 96 percent females, gave XXL an A minus CinemaScore, while critics gave it a decent 63 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
“I’m definitely down, but not out. When you have a movie that plays this strongly to women, it should begin over-indexing this week as females settle in after the holiday,” said Warners domestic distribution chief Dan Fellman. “And the film will be profitable, it’s just a question of how high we go. The fat lady hasn’t sung yet.”
In Gregory Jacob’s XXL, the group of friends – Channing Tatum, Joe Manganiello, Matt Bomer, Kevin Nash and Adam Rodriguez – road-trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C. to perform at a stripper convention.
Rounding out the top five at the box office this weekend is Ted 2 with $11 million for a domestic total of $58.3 million.
Top 10 Films at Weekend Box Office: June 19-21
- Jurassic World — $30.9 million
- Inside Out — $30.1 million
- Terminator Genisys — $28.7 million
- Magic Mike XXL — $12.0 million
- Ted 2 — $11.0 million
- Max — $7.0 million
- Spy — $5.5 million
- San Andreas — $3.0 million
- Me And Earl And The Dying Girl — $1.3 million
- Dope — $1.1 million
