For the third weekend in a row, Suicide Squad takes the box office lead once again with $20.7 million from 3,924 theaters for a total of $262.3 million.
“Suicide Squad took a shrewd box-office strategy,” says Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for comScore. “Everyone has been picking on this film critically. But the power of anti-superheroes at the box office is unquestionable. Do you want love or do you want box-office dominance?”
Sony’s Sausage Party landed in second place with $15.3 million from 3,103 theaters. The R-rated raunchy comedy has accumulated $65.3 million domestically thus far.
The weekend newcomers included Warner Bros.’ War Dogs, Focus Features’ Kubo and the Two Strings and Paramount’s Ben-Hur.
War Dogs, starring Miles Teller and Jonah Hill, opened in third place with $14.3 million from 3,258 theaters. Directed by Todd Phillips, the war drama earned a B CinemaScore – from a crowd of mostly male attendees (56 percent) – and a 59 percent “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes.
“There’s no question this was a passion for Todd. It’s smart and quirky, and these two actors turned in a great performance,” said Warner Bros. domestic distribution chief Jeff Goldstein.
The weekend’s only film with positive reviews goes to Kubo and the Two Strings, which took in $12.6 million from 3,260 theaters for a fourth place finish. The animated adventure is centered on a boy’s quest to reassemble a magical suit of armor. Charlize Theron, Art Parkinson, Ralph Fiennes, George Takei, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Rooney Mara and Matthew McConaughey star as the voice cast.
Kubo earned a strong 96 percent “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes, as well as an A CinemaScore.
Lastly, Ben-Hur – the reboot of the 1959 classic – flopped majorly as it debuted with only $11.35 million from 3,084 theaters, hardly finishing in fifth place. The film follows a man who is falsely accused of treason by his childhood friend and adoptive brother. Jack Huston, Toby Kebbell, Rodrigo Santoro, Nazanin Boniadi and Morgan Freeman star.
“This is the epic fail of the summer,” says Jeff Bock, senior box-office analyst for Exhibitor Relations.
“This was pushed as a straight-up action film. They courted the Christian demographic too late. And don’t remake a film that won best picture,” Bock added. “They still teach Ben-Hur in film school. Hopefully, this is a lesson for Hollywood.”
Ben-Hur received a low 29 percent “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes from critics and an A-minus CinemaScore from moviegoers.
Top 10 Films at Weekend Box Office: August 19-21
- Suicide Squad — $20.7 million
- Sausage Party — $15.3 million
- War Dogs — $14.3 million
- Kubo And The Two Strings — $12.6 million
- Ben-Hur — $11.35 million
- Pete’s Dragon — $11.3 million
- Bad Moms — $8.1 million
- Jason Bourne — $7.9 million
- The Secret Life Of Pets — $5.7 million
- Florence Foster Jenkins — $4.3 million
