Jon M. Chu‘s new highly anticipated musical has just released to stellar reviews from critics and audiences, but the box office numbers aren’t exactly “in the heights.” The new adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda‘s original musical is estimated to earn just $13 million in its opening weekend, far less than the $20 million that was originally predicted.
While these numbers may seem satisfactory for a film simultaneously releasing for free to HBO Max subscribers and in theaters during still ongoing pandemic, it’s a far cry from the domestic numbers that other films have opened to in recent weeks. Mortal Kombat and Godzilla Vs. Kong, which both released for free to HBO Max subscribers, earned $22.5 million and $32.2 million in their opening weeks respectively.
In The Heights follows Anthony Ramos as bodega owner named Usnavi, who discovers that his shop has sold a winning lottery ticket. As the neighborhood of Washington Heights reaches insane temperatures and deals with a blackout, friendships, relationships and dreams get put to the test. The film also stars Melissa Barrera, Leslie Grace, Corey Hawkins and Olga Merediz, and was made on a budget of $55 million.
The film will likely remain the top earner of the weekend but is being closely followed by John Krasinski‘s A Quiet Place 2, which is predicted to earn $11.4 million. The new horror sequel is slated to cross the $100 million mark, making it the largest domestic release of the pandemic.
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