In 1997, the original Men in Black debuted with $51 million in its opening weekend. Its two sequels modestly improved on that opening total. However, Men in Black: International broke the trend with a dismal $28.5 million opening. That was good enough to win the weekend box office. But Sony’s dreams of a fully revived MiB franchise appear to be dashed.
Via Deadline, The Secret Life of Pets 2 fell to second place, with $23.8 million. That’s less than $6 million behind MiB: International; which suggests that this weekend’s box office race was much closer than expected. Meanwhile, Disney’s live-action Aladdin remake is showing its legs at #3. In its fourth weekend, Aladdin took in $16.17 million, and brought its domestic total to $263.5 million. As for Dark Phoenix, its box office fortunes have taken another turn for the worse. The final X-Men movie from Fox fell 73% to $9 million. It’s an astounding drop for a franchise that was once the forerunner of every superhero movie that came after it.
The Elton John bio-pic, Rocketman, finished in fifth place with $8.8. million. That brings its domestic total to $66.1 million.
RELATED: Men in Black: International Review
Shaft, another summer sequel/revival, opened with a disappointing $8.3 million in sixth place. Godzilla: King of the Monsters followed in seventh place with $8.1 million. One of the summer’s most successful sequels, John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, took the eighth slot with $6.1 million. Late Night ($5.1 million) and Ma ($3.6 million) came in at ninth and tenth, respectively.
For the first time since its release, Avengers: Endgame didn’t place in the top 10. But it’s possible that Marvel’s most recent film may get a bump when Spider-Man: Far From Home arrives on July 2. However, Toy Story 4 will easily take next weekend’s box office crown, and probably the weekend after as well.
What do you think about this weekend’s box office results? Let us know in the comment section below!
Recommended Viewing: Men in Black Trilogy on Blu-ray
