'Suicide Squad' opens at $135 million, but don't cheer for it yet
A $135.1 million box office might look like a good start for Suicide Squad, but you've got to follow the money.
That number could have been bigger -- was projected to be bigger, even. The fact that it's not foretells a rough ride ahead for Warner Bros. latest building block in the fledgling DC Comics cinematic universe.
The daily returns tell the story. Suicide Squad's estimated domestic box office for Thursday night and Friday -- opening day, essentially -- is $65.1 million. Saturday's total dipped by 41 percent, to $38.4 million, and Sunday's current estimate predicts a 19 percent drop, to $31.2 million.
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It's not unusual for summer blockbuster audiences to dwindle as the weekend wears on, but Suicide Squad's Friday-to-Saturday drop is the same as The Dark Knight Rises was and steeper than Batman v Superman's 38 percent drop in March 2016.
For comparison, look at Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, which opened on the same weekend in 2014. Friday-to-Saturday and Saturday-to-Sunday attendance declines are both in the high teens -- 18.1 percent and 17.8 percent, respectively.
What does all this mean? Suicide Squad is doing okay, not great. The numbers are good -- an estimated $132 million overseas gives the movie a week one total of almost $270 million -- but attendance trends suggest interest will wane rapidly.
The poor critical reception is at least partially to blame, with a lowly 26 percent rating currently listed on RottenTomatoes. Theatergoers also aren't bowled over after they leave the theater, with a B+ rating from CinemaScore tying with other recent water-treaders like The Angry Birds Movie, Ice Age: Collision Course and Ghostbusters.
Take heart, fans: It's not all bad news. Suicide Squad earned enough to deliver the third-largest opening weekend of 2016, behind Batman v Superman (#2) and Captain America: Civil War (#1). It's also the biggest-ever opening in August, soaring past the $94.3 million bar set by Guardians of the Galaxy.
Trailing far behind Suicide Squad at #2 is Jason Bourne. Matt Damon's fourth starring role in the series opened at the top of the box office last week, but with a middling $59.2 million purse.
Things are looking even grimmer this week, with a 61.2 percent audience week-over-week decline bringing in an estimated $22.7 million. Bourne has close to $200 million at the global box office right now, but it likely won't be around -- in the U.S., at least -- for much longer.
The underdog hero of the week is Bad Moms, STX Entertainment's raunchy ensemble parenthood comedy from the writing duo behind The Hangover. The summer comedy offered valuable counter-programming when it opened against Bourne last week, and audiences rewarded it with a $23.8 million box office.
Now in week two, Bad Moms hangs onto its #3 weekend box office berth with an estimated $14.2 million. The numbers might not be on the same scale as action blockbusters like Suicide Squad or Bourne, but that's a low 40.4 percent attendance drop for Moms.
In other words, this is a movie with staying power. It's too early to start throwing around descriptors like "modern comedy classic," but happy audiences and decent reviews suggest a long life -- in theaters and at home -- for this one.
Topics Film
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
