Ridley Scott’s space film The Martian blasted to the top at the box office this weekend, with a stellar $55 million across 3,831 theaters – nearly surpassing Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity ($55.8 million) for the biggest October debut of all time.
Backed by 20th Century Fox, the $108 million production could end up beating Gravity if it does better than expected on Sunday, thus becoming the new record-holder for the month of October.
“It’s going to hold up really well,” said Phil Contrino, vice president and chief analyst at BoxOffice.com. “It’s got everything. It’s got suspense, action, heart and humor, and the ending is really satisfying. People will walk out of the theater and talk it up to their friends.”
Just last week, as the film was nearing its premiere, NASA held an urgent press conference to announce it has confirmed the discovery of liquid salt water on Mars. The space agency says, however, the timing was solely just a coincidence.
“Science is at the heart of The Martian and is presented in a very accessible way,” said Fox distribution chief Chris Aronson. “This movie has the potential to get people excited about our space program again.”
Adapted by screenwriter Drew Goddard from Andy Weir’s best-selling novel, the film stars Matt Damon as a stranded NASA astronaut who is attempting to survive alone on the Red Plantet so he can be rescued. Damon stars opposite Jessica Chastain, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels, Michael Pena, Kate Mara, Sean Bean, Sebastian Stan and Aksel Hennie.
Interview: Matt Damon on the Filming and Science Behind ‘The Martian’
The Martian was favorable most towards males (56 percent), with 72 percent of the audience over the age of 25. Moviegoers and critics were both fond of the film, giving it a triumphant A CinemaScore and outstanding 94 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Following in second place is Sony’s monster-filled animated Hotel Transylvania 2 for a $33 million finish. The family friendly feature, starring Adam Sandler’s animated Dracula, has earned $90.5 million after two weeks – likely to cross the $100 million mark by next weekend.
Lionsgate’s Sicario expanded from 59 theaters to 2,620 theaters, taking in a solid $12.1 million for a third place finish and bringing its total to $15.1 million. The drug cartel thriller nabbed an A minus CinemaScore and 93 percent “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes. It stars Benicio Del Toro, Emily Blunt and Josh Brolin.
“Lionsgate has a solid hit on its hands with Sicario, and this will continue to hold up well over the next couple of weeks,” said Contrino. “And Sicario will definitely be in the awards conversation this fall.”
Falling in fourth and fifth place at the box office is Warner Bros.’ The Intern and Fox’s Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials with $11.6 million ($36.5 million domestic total) and $7.7 million ($63.2 million domestic total), respectively.
Top 10 Films at Weekend Box Office: October 2-4
- The Martian — $55 million
- Hotel Transylvania 2 — $33 million
- Sicario — $12.1 million
- The Intern — $11.6 million
- Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials — $7.7 million
- Black Mass — $5.91 million
- Everest — $5.51 million
- The Visit — $3.95 million
- War Room— $2.8 million
- The Perfect Guy — $2.4 million
