Jumanji: The Next Level had an impressive win with a $59.2 million debut last weekend, but The Rock’s stint atop the box office will be a short one, as Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is set to hit theaters this weekend. Disney is looking to put a big fat punctuation mark on the record-breaking year that has been 2019 for them. Universal is also releasing the musical Cats this weekend, with Lionsgate expanding the Oscar hopeful Bombshell nationwide.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker sees director J.J. Abrams return to the franchise after helming 2015’s The Force Awakens. Rian Johnson took over for 2017’s The Last Jedi, which proved to be divisive amongst the fanbase. Not only was Abrams dealing with that element, but he’s also having to wrap up the entire Skywalker saga, as this is being billed as the end of the main story we’ve been following since 1977. While the long term fate of Episode IX remains to be seen, tracking has the movie bringing in $200 million or more at the box office on opening weekend.
For the sake of comparison, The Force Awakens debuted to a then-record $248 million, with The Last Jedi bringing in $220 million on its opening weekend. So Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is, more or less, tracking in the same range. The main problem here is that the finale of the sequel trilogy has been met with a mixed response from critics, currently boasting a 56 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. In the coming weeks, word of mouth from fans could be the determining factor in how long its legs will be. The Last Jedi finished with $660.2 million domestically, while The Force Awakens wrapped its run with $936.6 million, which remains a record today.
With numbers like that, it’s going to be a distant battle for second place. It’s expected that Jumanji: The Next Level will be able to hold off this weekend’s other newcomers and should bring in between $25 and $30 million in its second frame. Next up should be director Tom Hooper’s adaptation of the Broadway musical Cats. The movie boasts a stacked cast, which includes Taylor Swift, Idris Elba and Judi Dench. However, the internet’s response to the CGI felines has been palpable. It’s expected to make between $15 and $20 million, which is a potentially rocky start for the allegedly very expensive undertaking.
Bombshell opened well in limited release late weekend. Directed by Jay Roach with a cast headlined by Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie and Nicole Kidman, the biopic covers the Roger Ailes scandal at Fox News. It’s expected to make between $7 and $12 million. Both Black Christmas and Richard Jewel, which opened below expectations last weekend, will fall out of the top five this weekend. Be sure to check out our full list of weekend box office predictions below and check back with us on Sunday for the weekend estimates. Numbers used in this report were provided by Box Office Mojo.
| 1 | Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker | |
| 2 | Jumanji: The Next Level | |
| 3 | Cats | |
| 4 | Frozen 2 | |
| 5 | Bombshell | |
| 6 | Knives Out | |
| 7 | Black Christmas | |
| 8 | Richard Jewell | |
| 9 | Ford V Ferrari | |
| 10 | A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood |
