Sony/Escape Artists’ film The Equalizer 3 is set to have a strong opening weekend, projected to make $11.5 million on Friday. The film is expected to gross in the low-$30 million range over the weekend and have a four-day total in the high-$30 million range. The movie, which was financed by TSG and Eagle Pictures and cost around $70 million, is showing in 3,965 theaters.
Interestingly, Warner Bros will not be receiving any money from Sony’s recent romantic comedy The Broken Hearts Gallery. This is because the Friday gross for The Equalizer 3 only includes $3.8 million from Thursday early showings. On the other hand, Gran Turismo, directed by Neill Blomkamp, is projected to come in fourth place in its second weekend with a weekend gross of $6.5 million and a four-day total of $8 million. This will bring its total to $30.2 million by Monday.
Despite the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, The Equalizer 3 has been able to garner attention and open strongly. This is largely due to Sony’s marketing efforts, as the film has received little publicity from the actors. According to RelishMix, the film has a strong social media presence, with a universe of 233.7 million across platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. This is 9% higher than other action-thriller films. The film’s trailer reposting rate is also high at 38:1.
Barbie from Warner Bros is projected to come in second place with a weekend gross of $9.1 million and a four-day total of $12 million. This will bring its total to an impressive $610.8 million. Blue Beetle, in its third weekend, is projected to make $6.4 million over three days and $8.3 million over four days, bringing its total to $57.6 million.
Furthermore, Universal’s Oppenheimer will make $4.9 million in its seventh weekend, with a four-day total of $6.4 million, and a running total of $309.4 million. The Equalizer 3 is expected to have a strong 4-day opening weekend, projected to be between $30 million and $40 million, making it the second-best opening for the Labor Day holiday after Shang-Chi.
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes have given The Equalizer 3 a 76% rating, while audiences have rated it at an impressive 92%. The movie had a strong opening night, making $3.8 million across 3,241 locations from showtimes starting at 3 PM. It has also received additional support from Imax and PLFs at the box office.
Compared to the previous film in the series, Equalizer 2, the previews for The Equalizer 3 have performed better, earning $3.8 million compared to $3.1 million for Equalizer 2. The first film in the franchise made $1.45 million in previews, $12.4 million on its opening Friday, and had a total opening weekend of $34.1 million. It eventually grossed $101.5 million domestically. Equalizer 2 made $102 million in total. Altogether, the franchise has grossed an impressive $382.7 million worldwide.
Additionally, Gran Turismo from Sony remains the top film of the week, making $22.1 million, thanks in part to its nine days of advance preview figures. Barbie from Warner Bros made $1.3 million on Thursday, bringing its total to $21.1 million in its sixth week, and a running total of $598.8 million. Oppenheimer from Universal made $824,000 on Thursday, reaching a total of $12 million in its sixth week, and a running total of $303 million. Blue Beetle made $685,000 on Thursday, amounting to a total of $15.7 million in its second week, and a running total of $49.3 million.
Finally, Kushi, a film by Shiva Nirvana, had a gross of $475,000 from early showings.
“Infuriatingly humble tv expert. Friendly student. Travel fanatic. Bacon fan. Unable to type with boxing gloves on.”