In its debut,Clint Eastwood’sSullyeasily wins the weekend frame at the box office with over $35.5 million. That’s not so surprising consideringTom Hank’s continues to be a solid box office draw, especially when playing real-life heroes like that of the titular CaptainChesley Sullenberger. Whatissurprising is that, in all of Eastwood’s 35 feature film directorial credits, theonly one that has topped $18 millionin its opening weekend had been 2000’sSpace Cowboys.Sullynearly doubled that in its debut frame.
What remains to be seen is whether or notSullyhas the legs to place the film as one of Eastwood’s top total earners ever. That’s a tough task considering Eastwood’s top film,American Sniper, tore through cinemas in 2014 to the tune of $350 million domestically and well over half-a-billion dollars worldwide. Eastwood also has a trio of $100-million-plus earners domestically, includingGran Torino,Unforgiven, andMillion Dollar Babyin descending order. With a $35.5 million start, $100 million is certainly in reach, but its performance will depend on the next few weeks of competition.
The rest of September sees a number of possible box office surprises like the new installment ofBlair Witch–horror movies have a habit of debuting big when there’s buzz preceding their debut–and theMark Wahlberg-starringDeepwater Horizon. There’s also an animated film that could take a sizable chunk out of the box office pie: Warner Bros. Animation’sStorks. There’s alsoTim Burton’sMiss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Childrento contend with, but Burton’s openings have been anything but box-office-busting lately, so we’ll have to wait and see how audiences respond to his latest adaptation.
Check out the weekend’s Top 10 below (viaBox Office Mojo):
$35,505,000
When the Bough Breaks
$15,000,000
Don’t Breathe
$66,833,158
Suicide Squad
$307,407,853
The Wild Life
$3,400,000
Kubo and the Two Strings
$40,847,680
Pete’s Dragon
$70,016,653
$107,526,266
Hell or High Water
$19,823,734
Sausage Party
$93,182,579
