Notable Openings This Weekend: The Expendables 3, The Giver, Let’s Be Cops
While it doesn’t have the gravitas it did last weekend, the box office should be another tight one once again. Although, Guardians of the Galaxy didn’t have the staying power we all thought it would. Those mutated turtles took care of business, but they have another tough match up again this weekend: A bunch of old guys who still think they’re action stars. Get ready for Harrison Ford and Arnold Schwarzenegger to pop up for sixty seconds of screen time, but we’ll still bill them on the poster anyway. We also have two Academy Award winning actors trying their hands at the whole young adult novel thing. And I’m extra grumpy, because we had one of those random Wednesday openings earlier this week. I hate those! reak out the nursing homes, it’s box office prediction time – Expendable style.
The Expendables franchise is a gimmick. I know some people like it, so whatever. My biggest problem with this series is they trick and bamboozle you into thinking the people you actually want to see are going to be in the whole movie, when in reality, they only show up at the beginning and end, aside from Stallone. Other than him, the Expendables is really about Jason Statham, Terry Crews, and Randy Couture. Yay. Woo-Hoo. Seriously, why do I care about these guys? They are forgettable action stars. Also, Kellan Lutz? Are you kidding me? We just saw this guy crap the bed with The Legend of Hercules, and now he’s with Stallone? Cut me a break. If this franchise was truly about guys like Stallone, Schwarzenegger, Harrison Ford, or Bruce Willis, then I’d be interested. I’m going off on a tangent though, and you want to know about the box office. The series has been solid, but nothing earth shattering. The second one did even worse, opening below $30 Million. With this one being Rated PG-13, that certainly helps. This will do fine, opening just above $30 Million, where it will be neck and neck with Ninja Turtles all weekend.
The Giver could do around $25 Million if it opened in September. The title has some name recognition, but in the summer season, it will come and go. It looks fine, but what a waste of Jeff Bridges and Meryl Streep. The other lead, Brenton Thwaites, has that “I’m in a young adult novel adaptation, and my performance is going to be ridiculously monotone” look. The Giver will do ho-hum, but not embarrassing business.
People seem to like New Girl, which is where Jake Johnson and Damon Wayans Jr. come into play. I complain about the Wednesday opening, but it was probably a good idea to get a jump on the weekend. This definitely offers a different fare for the weekend, and the last pure comedy we had this summer was Sex Tape, so people may be eager to laugh again, because that film certainly didn’t provide any.
How Will It all Break Down…
It will come down to the wire, but I think the PG-13 rating, and crappy word of mouth for Ninja Turtles should propel the old men to victory. Get ready for The Expendables 4 with Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. Don’t pretend like it won’t happen.
TOP 5 BOX OFFICE PREDICTIONS
1) The Expendables 3 – $33 Million
2) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles — $31 Million
3) Guardians of the Galaxy – $22 Million
4) Let’s Be Cops — $17 Million
5) The Giver — $15.5 Million
