Art vs. commerce. That was the battle we witnessed at the box office last weekend, and the art side of the equation, Tom Cruise’s Digger, got trounced by Verity, the erotic thriller starring Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson. We’re about to witness the very same kind of box office battle go down again this weekend, with Universal’s horror flick, Other Mommy, going up against Aaron Sorkin’s The Social Reckoning. And just like last week, the prestige movie hasn’t got a prayer at the box office.
Other Mommy, which benefits from a great trailer, as well as the star power of Jessica Chastain, shouldn’t have a hard time topping the box office. But the early buzz is quite bad, with the first reactions suggesting it’s pretty terrible. Bad buzz means it likely won’t top $20 million—I’m thinking about $18 million and change. Verity, which was also poorly received by audiences, will be in second place, with a steep drop due to its poor C+ CinemaScore, meaning it will make about $15 million.
Resident Evil should make about $8 million this weekend, which is good enough for third place. I’m thinking Heart of the Beast, with Brad Pitt, which is getting good word of mouth, should come in around $7 million in fourth place.
So, where does that leave The Social Reckoning? In a distant fifth place with about $5 million. That’s a far cry from the $22 million The Social Network opened with sixteen years ago. Of course, the Sorkin-directed movie isn’t as hip as the David Fincher one, nor is it getting the same kind of reviews.
But what about Digger? It will sink like a stone, especially now that it’s losing its IMAX screens. I expect it to make maybe $3 million this weekend, as it goes down as one of the biggest bombs in box office history.
Here are our predictions:
- Other Mommy: $18 million
- Verity: $15 million
- Resident Evil: $8 million
- Heart of the Beast: $7 million
- The Social Reckoning: $5 million
What are you seeing this weekend? Let us know in the comments.
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