Pokémon Detective Pikachu takes over $5m during its first outing at weekend box office
Pokémon Detective Pikachu has proven it wasn’t up to the challenge of unseating Avengers: Endgame at the box office this weekend, landing just shy of the Marvel superhero flick which came out on top for the fourth consecutive week.
The final film in the current phase of the Avengers storyline took a further $5.48m, adding to its running total of $74.34m, while Detective Pikachu took $5.02m.
The Pokémon film sees Ryan Reynolds voice the titular yellow critter opposite Justice Smith, and is the first live-action adaptation in the franchise. Distributed by Warner Bros, the film is based on a video game of the same name and was directed by Rob Letterman who also directed Monsters vs. Aliens. It can now boast the biggest opening weekend for a film based on a video game, overtaking 2001’s Lara Croft Tomb Raider.
Avengers: Endgame experienced a significant drop from last week, down 60% in Australia and 57% in the US, but is still on track to become the second highest grossing film of all time in the US domestic market with just US$40m to go before it beats the current second place holder, Avatar. Star Wars: The Force Awakens sits in the top spot, $200m ahead of Avengers: Endgame currently. At a global level, Endgame is currently nearing US$2.5bn compared to Avatar’s global taking of $2.78bn.
Another new entrant in the box office is Universal’s The Hustle, which took $2.21m across the weekend. The heist comedy pairs Anne Hathaway with Rebel Wilson and has been dubbed a female-fronted remake of 1988’s Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. It aired across 260 screens throughout the weekend, compared to Avengers’ 686 and Pikachu’s 412.
Rounding out the top five was Top End Wedding, which is still performing well. It took the fourth spot, taking $866,428 for its second weekend, across 288 screens, for a total of $2.51m. Roadshow’s newly released Poms took the fifth spot with $787,380 from 298 screens. The Zara Hayes directed comedy stars Diane Keaton and Jackie Weaver as retirees who start a cheerleading squad.
Disney’s live-action Dumbo remake dropped from the top ten, falling 57% to take $91,001 in its seventh weekend, giving it an overall total of $11.99m.
| Title (Distributor) | Weekend B/O | Screens | Total B/O |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avengers: Endgame (Disney) | $5,479,149 | 686 | $74,362,888 |
| Pokemon Detective Pikachu (Wb) | $5,019,910 | 412 | $5,019,910 |
| The Hustle (Universal) | $2,213,739 | 260 | $2,624,301 |
| Top End Wedding (Universal) | $866,428 | 288 | $2,997,918 |
| Poms (Roadshow) | $787,380 | 298 | $837,209 |
| Long Shot (Studiocanal) | $426,448 | 249 | $1,535,702 |
| Maharshi (Southern Star) | $282,555 | 41 | $282,555 |
| Peppa Pig: Festival Of Fun (Universal) | $153,437 | 222 | $711,748 |
| All Is True (Sony) | $116,218 | 32 | $127,966 |
| The Chaperone (Studiocanal) | $100,057 | 151 | $1,180,219 |
| Dumbo (live Action) (Disney) | $91,001 | 136 | $12,003,590 |
| Wonder Park (Paramount) | $73,756 | 102 | $6,359,489 |
| Gloria Bell (Roadshow) | $63,423 | 42 | $518,041 |
| The Curse Of The Weeping Woman (Wb) | $59,701 | 135 | $2,166,384 |
| Captain Marvel (Disney) | $59,195 | 56 | $41,556,550 |
| The Aftermath (Fox) | $58,551 | 104 | $1,991,923 |
| Shazam! (Wb) | $43,540 | 88 | $16,655,844 |
| Burning (Palace) | $38,851 | 17 | $517,449 |
| Always Miss You (Chinalion Film) | $33,776 | 15 | $33,776 |
| Five Feet Apart (Roadshow) | $29,492 | 66 | $7,208,116 |
Endgame is about $US 300M short of Avatar worldwide — 2.79 Billion to 2.49 .
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Hi RussVB,
Thanks for flagging, you’re 100% correct. I was using the US domestic figures, where Endgame is edging up on Avatar, not the global figures, and was not clear about that. The story has been amended to reflect your comments.
Thanks,
Hannah
Endgame “is still on track to become the highest grossing film of all time in the US domestic market” – this is incorrect. Star Wars: The Force Awakens is the highest ever at over $900million in the US.
Avatar is second highest and will be overtaken by Endgame, making Endgame the second highest.
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Hi Nate,
You are correct, thank you. Story has been updated.
Hannah