Warner Bros./New Line’s “Final Destination: Bloodlines” tearing up the box office in a way that the revived horror franchise never did in its 2000s heyday, earning $21 million from 3,523 screens on opening day as it is now estimated for a series record $48 million launch weekend.
The previous top opening weekend for “Final Destination” belonged to its fourth installment, “The Final Destination,” which earned $27.4 million in 2009. That amounts to around $41 million in today’s money, meaning that “Bloodlines” holds the franchise opening record even after inflation adjustment.
The first film in the horror series in 14 years got to this point thanks to a mix of nostalgic millennial horror fans and strong reception from critics and audiences, earning a series high 92% critics and 90% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes to go with a B+ on CinemaScore.
Such a strong start should give “Final Destination: Bloodlines” a good chance to leg out as a gory alternative to the family friendly “Lilo & Stitch” and the action-packed “Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning” on Memorial Day weekend. If it can avoid being frontloaded despite the buzz, “Bloodlines” will be well on its way to passing the overall franchise record set by “The Final Destination” with $187 million worldwide.
Looking far less impressive is Lionsgate’s “Hurry Up Tomorrow,” the companion film to the new album of the same name from Canadian singer-songwriter The Weeknd. While the album was well reviewed, the film has been panned with a 17% Rotten Tomatoes score and a C- on CinemaScore as it heads for a $3 million opening weekend outside the top 5.
The weak start won’t be a financial hit against Lionsgate, which only handled distribution on “Hurry Up Tomorrow.” But it is the second straight weekend that a film distributed by Lionsgate has opened to less than $4 million following the $2.1 million launch of the Kerry Washington action film “Shadow Force.”
More to come…
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