Red One may climb to the top of the box office on its debut weekend, but the numbers may not bring Yuletide joy. With a Friday gross of $10.9 million, the film is on track to take home $30 million by Sunday’s close.
When Santa Claus mysteriously disappears, the North Pole must ally itself with questionable allies to bring him back before Christmas Eve. J. K. Simmons takes up the red coat as Santa himself, alongside Chris Evans, Dwayne Johnson, and Lucy Liu.
The $10.9 million from the Friday grosses also include Thursday showings and preview shows. Its $30 million total for the weekend that it’s currently tracking will put it on a steep course to climb, as it needs to recoup a reported budget of $250 million.
Variety notes that Red One, on top of a sluggish opening weekend, will have major competition come next weekend, and moving into the holidays. Next weekend sees the release of Gladiator II and Wicked, while Moana 2, which is already tracking a big opening, debuts just a few days later ahead of Thanksgiving.
Second place this weekend will go to Venom: The Last Dance, being dethroned by Red One. By Sunday, the three day total for the third outing of Venom and Eddie Brock is expected to sit around $6.1 million dollars.
Best Christmas Pageant Ever also sits around $6 million for the weekend, coming up just shy of Venom’s gross. The rest of the top five is rounded out by Heretic, with $4.6 million, and Wild Robot, with $4.5 million.
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