We’ll have a new #1 after Memorial Day weekend and it will be a sequel. Will it be the latest X-Men chapter or will Disney continue their ’16 dominance with an Alice In Wonderland sequel no one seems to be asking for? Here’s what MHT thinks you should see and not see for the weekend of May 27th:
X-Men: Apocalypse
Theater Count: 4,148
Starring: James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, Rose Byrne, Nicholas Hoult, Olivia Munn, Oscar Isaac
Buzz:
While not epically bad like X-Men Origins – Wolverine, the reception for X-Men: Apocalypse is less than warm. Early critical response is split with only 47% of critics on the plus side on Rotten Tomatoes. The film has had a number of trailers and the last one shot it’s wad with the Wolverine reveal but if we know anything about these superhero films, if there’s a big reveal in the trailer, there’s likely to be a bigger reveal in the actual movie. Is Wolverine enough to overcome the poor early reviews? 99% of the 95,000+ respondents on Rotten Tomatoes still want to see it so that bodes well for box office bucks anyway.
See the Trailer:
MHT Hot Take:
If you’ve been along for the X-Men ride this long, you might as well see it to the end (even if this isn’t the end… but it is called Apocalypse after all) and take these characters around the block at least one more time, right?
Alice Through The Looking Glass
Theater Count: 3,763
Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen, Alan Rickman
Buzz:
Even more poorly received (28% Tomatometer) and less anticipated (95% of 21,000+ want to see) than X-Men: Apocalypse, is it safe to bet against Disney with their magical ’16 run? With the unbelievable success of the original live action version of Alice In Wonderland, Disney almost didn’t have a choice but to make a sequel. It’s not going to open to $100+ million like the original but even if it does only have of it’s initial take, that’s still over $50 million. The $170 million budget might have been a bit too much for this sequel but it might have enough steam to break even. There are a lot of people rooting against Alice hoping it will fail.
See the Trailer:
MHT Hot Take:
I’d say skip it but would have the same for the first one and would you have listened? No!!!! So, do what you want but don’t come crying to me when you’re wishing you had those 2 hours back.
Box Office Recap (May 20th Weekend)
- The Angry Birds Movie ($38,155,177) MHT #1 Forecast at $40 million
- Captain America: Civil War ($32,939,739) MHT #3 Forecast at $36.9 million
- Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising ($21,760,405) MHT #2 Forecast at $38 million
- The Nice Guys ($11,203,270) MHT #4 Forecast at $15 million
- The Jungle Book ($10,944,350) MHT #5 Forecast at $11.3 million
- Money Monster ($7,016,884) MHT #6 Forecast at $6.7 million
- The Darkness ($2,272,618) MHT #7 Forecast at $2.1 million
- Zootopia ($1,683,982) MHT #8 Forecast at $1.6 million
- The Huntsman: Winter’s War ($1,209,045) MHT #10 Forecast at $1 million
- Mother’s Day ($1,139,283) MHT #9 Forecast at $1.3 million
On the money with The Angry Birds Movie, The Jungle Book, Money Monster, The Darkness and Zootopia but way off on Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising and a little overzealous when it comes to The Nice Guys.
Box Office Predictions for May 27th Weekend (4-Day Weekend)
- X-Men: Apocalypse ($82,000,000)
- Alice Through the Looking Glass ($59,500,000)
- The Angry Birds Movie ($26,700,000)
- Captain America: Civil War ($20,800,000)
- Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising ($12,500,000)
- The Jungle Book ($7,700,000)
- The Nice Guys ($7,500,000)
- Money Monster ($4,000,000)
- Love & Friendship ($2,800,000)
- Zootopia ($900,000)
The Darkness ($850k), A Bigger Splash ($600k), The Huntsman: Winter’s War ($400k), Barbershop: The Next Cut ($350k), Mother’s Day ($200k)
X-Men: Apocalypse survives the critics better than Alice Through the Looking Glass.
Want to play along yourself? Check out Fantasy Movie League! (MHT is not affiliated with FML in any way… just a fan!)