NEW YORK -- âVenom: The Last Danceâ showed less bite than expected at the box office, collecting US$51 million in its opening weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday, significantly down from the alien symbiote franchiseâs previous entries.
Projections for the third âVenomâ film from Sony Pictures had been closer to US$65 million. More concerning, though, was the drop off from the first two âVenomâ films. The 2018 original debuted with US$80.2 million, while the 2021 follow-up, âVenom: Let There Be Carnage,â opened with US$90 million even as theaters were still in recovery mode during the pandemic.
âThe Last Dance,â starring Tom Hardy as a journalist who shares his body with an alien entity also voiced by Hardy, could still turn a profit for Sony. Its production budget, not accounting for promotion and marketing, was about US$120 million â significantly less than most comic-book films.
But âThe Last Danceâ is also performing better overseas. Internationally, âVenom: The Last Danceâ collected US$124 million over the weekend, including US$46 million over five days of release in China. Thatâs good enough for one of the best international weekends of the year for a Hollywood release.
Still, neither reviews (36% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) nor audience scores (a franchise-low âB-â CinemaScore) have been good for the film scripted by Kelly Marcel and Hardy, and directed by Marcel.
The low weekend for âVenom: The Last Danceâ also likely insures that superhero films will see their lowest-grossing year in a dozen years, not counting the pandemic year of 2020, according to David A. Gross, a film consultant who publishes a newsletter for Franchise Entertainment.
Following on the heels of the âJoker: Folie à Deuxâ flop, Gross estimates that 2024 superhero films will gross about US$2.25 billion worldwide. The only upcoming entry is Marvelâs âKraven the Hunter,â due out Dec. 13. Even with the US$1.3 billion of âDeadpool & Wolverine,â the genre hasnât, overall, been dominating the way it once did. In 2018, for example, superhero films accounted for more than US$7 billion in global ticket sales.
Last weekâs top film, the Paramount Pictures horror sequel âSmile 2,â dropped to second place with US$9.4 million. That brings its two-week total to US$83.7 million worldwide.
The weekendâs biggest success story might have been âConclave,â the papal thriller starring Ralph Fiennes and directed by Edward Berger (âAll Quiet on the Western Frontâ). The Focus Features release, a major Oscar contender, launched with US$6.5 million in 1,753 theaters.
That put âConclaveâ into third place, making it the rare adult-oriented drama to make a mark theatrically. Some 77% of ticket buyers were over the age of 35, Focus said. With a strong opening and stellar reviews, âConclaveâ could continue to gather momentum both with moviegoers and Oscar voters.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
- "Venom: The Last Dance,â US$51 million.
- âSmile 2," US$9.4 million.
- âConclave,â US$6.5 million.
- âThe Wild Robot,â US$6.5 million.
- âWe Live in Time,â US$4.8 million.
- âTerrifier 3,â US$4.3 million.
- âBeetlejuice Beetlejuice,â US$3.2 million.
- âAnora,â US$867,142.
- âPiece by Piece,â US$720,000.
- âTransformers One,â US$720,000.