Box Office Report for the Week of February 25

It’s the calm before the sandstorm this weekend as Dune: Part Two plans to obliterate box office expectations in the first major blockbuster of 2024. At the time of the publication of this article, many moviegoers will make their way to the cinema for the Fan First IMAX Premiere, which will hopefully wake up a rather quiet — and sad — moviegoing year.

This weekend, Bob Marley: One Love once again takes the top spot with a $13.5 million gross. The film dropped considerably compared to its record-breaking opening weekend, but not as badly as I thought it would’ve been, considering its negative reviews. Audiences seemed to have enjoyed Bob Marley, which boasts a strong audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an A on CinemaScore.

This weekend’s biggest release was the faith-based drama Ordinary Angels, which stars Hillary Swank and Alan Ritchson. Some will laugh at me for saying it’s a big release, but the faith-based market is incredibly strong. Did you know the film was co-written by Kelly Fremon Craig and Meg Tilly? You do now. I have personally not seen the film yet, but it has gotten strong reviews, with some critics calling it the best faith-based film in years. It grossed $6.5 million this weekend against a small budget of $12 million, already sealing its commercial success.

Ethan Coen‘s solo directorial effort, Drive-Away Dolls, isn’t doing as well as Focus hoped, with the film garnering mixed reviews and a meager $2.4 million tally in 2,280 venues. Thankfully, Ethan will be reuniting with Joel Coen for an upcoming horror film, hopefully seeing them back in their glory days.

The film was outshined by the release of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba – To the Hashira Training, which benefitted from PLF & IMAX screens. The film is a compilation of the season three (Swordsmith Village Arc) finale and the premiere episode of season four (Hashira Training Arc), and it grossed $11.5 million this weekend. As a fan of Demon Slayer, seeing the episodes on the big screen was a special moment, and it’s of no surprise that is doing as well as it is, as the moviegoing landscape is incredibly barren right now. Thankfully, Denis Villeneuve returns to the big screen next week for another special trip to Arrakis, which will spice up the cinemas after two months of silence.

Here is the full list of the top ten films of the weekend

1. Bob Marley: One Love (Paramount): $13.5M (-52.9%) – 3,597 theatres
2. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba – To the Hashira Training (Sony): $11.5M – 1,949 theatres
3. Ordinary Angels (Lionsgate): $6.5M – 3,020 theatres
4. Madame Web (Sony/Marvel): $6.0M (-60.9%) – 4,013 theatres
5. Migration (Universal): $3.0M (-21.5%) – 2,434 theatres
6. Argylle (Universal/Apple TV+): $2.8M (-42.7%) – 3,060 theatres
7. Wonka (Warner Bros): $2.5M (-27.9%) – 2,203 theatres
8. Drive-Away Dolls (Universal): $2.4M – 2,280 theatres
9. The Beekeeper (Amazon MGM Studios): $1.9M (-38.9%) – 2,157 theatres
10. The Chosen: Season 4 – Episodes 4-6 (Fathom Events): $1.8M (-49.4%) – 2,090 theatres

Source: Box Office Mojo