As Americans prepare to watch the election next week, they seem less inclined to watch the movies. Theaters are seeing a somewhat muted weekend to start November, with the widest new release, Robert Zemeckis and Tom Hanks‘ time-warping drama “Here,” now coming in behind the already slim projections it had going into the weekend.
The Miramax-financed production grossed $1.94 million from 2,647 locations across Friday and preview screenings, now on pace for an opening weekend around $5.1 million. It’s a disappointing sum for “Here,” which carries a production budget around $45 million. Sony’s TriStar is handling distribution after acquiring rights to the film.
The hope for “Here” is that the reunion between Zemeckis, Hanks and fellow “Forrest Gump” star Robin Wright could reach an older audience. Written by “Gump” scribe Eric Roth, adapting Richard McGuire’s acclaimed graphic novel, the film sees Zemeckis using cutting-edge technology again, with lots of de-aging effects on his actors. “Here” observes a family’s evolution through the years, with the film camera staying stationary in the corner of their living room.
It’s an intriguing formal gambit, but one that critics have largely rejected. “Here” landed with a shrug at its red carpet premiere at AFI Fest in Los Angeles last weekend — a Hollywood hometown affair that was primed to be generous toward a production with legacy talent behind it. It was an inauspicious launch. Adult-skewing dramas have been tougher sells to theatrical audiences these days, and negative reviews can especially cripple their viability. Audiences also aren’t feeling moved by “Here” either, with early ticketbuyers polled to a lukewarm “B-” grade from CinemaScore.
Another movie aimed at grown-ups and helmed by a legacy director also arrives this weekend: Clint Eastwood’s “Juror #2.” The courtroom thriller, starring Nicholas Hoult and Toni Collette, received a much warmer reception than “Here” at its own AFI Fest premiere. In the days since, it has turned in the strongest reviews for an Eastwood film in over a decade. As reported by Variety, Warner Bros. is giving the mid-$30 million-budgeted drama a limited release in less than 20 domestic markets. The studio has not reported box office earnings for the film.
Holding onto the top slot at the box office, Sony’s “Venom: The Last Dance” added $6.6 million on Friday. It looks to slip 56% from its $51 million opening weekend to push its overall domestic haul to $86 million over 10 days. It’s not a bad hold, but the film is pacing well behind both previous “Venom” entries, which each surpassed $80 million domestic in their opening weekends alone. “The Last Dance” is at least resonating more with overseas audiences, but even with those international returns this trilogy-capper will finish behind its predecessors.
Universal’s “The Wild Robot” is repeating in second place with another impressive hold, looking to slide just 2% in its sixth weekend of release for a $6.7 million haul. The DreamWorks Animation feature has stayed more relevant than the competition, despite already being available through premium video on-demand services. It’ll cross $120 million in North America through Sunday, now ranking as the 13th-highest-grossing domestic release of the year.
Paramount’s “Smile 2” looks to get bronze over “Here,” projecting $6.4 million for its third weekend for a 33% drop. The horror sequel will reached $50 million domestic on Sunday.
“Conclave” rounds out the top five, with the Focus Features release looking to slide a slim 24% in its sophomore outing for a $5 million weekend. The well-reviewed Vatican-set thriller, which is courting awards attention, should surpass $14 million domestic through Sunday.
Also opening this weekend, Viva Kids is putting the little-promoted animated feature “Hitpig!” in roughly 2,000 locations. Audiences turned in a positive B+ grade on Cinema Score for the film, which features an eclectic voice cast ranging from Jason Sudeikis to RuPaul to Anitta to Rainn Wilson to Hannah Gadsby to Flavor Flav. Rivals have “Hitpig!” earning just over $1 million in its opening weekend, well outside the top ten on domestic charts.
