Weekend Predictions: Can the Grudge Hold Audience’s Attention?
January 2, 2020
It is the first weekend of the new year and the only wide release to talk about is a low-budget horror movie, The Grudge, with nearly no buzz and almost no reviews. Unfortunately, it has almost no chance of matching last year’s low-budget horror film, Escape Room. Fortunately, this year’s holdovers, led by Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, will outpace last year’s holdovers giving 2020 its first win during the first weekend of the year.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker should have no trouble earning first place this weekend adding to its already impressive total. The film hit $400 million on New Year’s Day, which was just its 13th day of release making it the seventh fastest film to reach that milestone. The film should add another $33 million over the weekend putting it on pace for $500 million domestically. It was already the sixth film released in 2019 to get to $400 million and if it gets to $500 million, it will only be the third such release from 2019.
Jumanji: The Next Level will remain in second place, likely with just under $20 million. The film hit $200 million on Wednesday, which is enough to be considered a financial success; however, it is well behind its predecessor and it is not going to catch up.
Frozen II and Little Women will be in a very close race for third place with both films earning about $12 million. This will help Frozen II climb the all-time domestic chart entering the top 20. For Little Women it will help it reach $100 million domestically, assuming it turns its reviews into Awards Season success.
The Grudge is expected to struggle at the box office for a number of reasons. Firstly, the franchise hasn’t been in theaters for over a decade. Also, the films didn’t have much of a cultural impact even at the height of their popularity. Finally, its reviews are weak, with even many of the positive reviews being very unenthusiastic. That said, it should still be able to grab fifth place with about $10 million. If it does stumble, then Spies in Disguise will be there to grab its spot in the top five.
- Fastest to $400 million
- New Year’s Day Box Office Chart
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- 2019 Domestic Box Office
Filed under: Weekend Preview, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Frozen II, Spies in Disguise, The Grudge, Jumanji: The Next Level, Little Women, Grudge