'Creed III' hammers box office with sports film-record $58.7M opening
Rocky series sequel Creed III (United Artists/NASDAQ:AMZN) punched well above its weight at movie theaters over the weekend, winning the interval with a rock-solid $58.7M in ticket sales.
The film, directed by and starring Michael B. Jordan as the son of the original franchise's Apollo Creed, averaged more than $14,600 per theater in a wide release and easily surpassed a fast-fading entry from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania's (NYSE:DIS) business fell more than 60% for the second week in a row since opening, though its $12.5M was enough to land it in second and hold off a surprisingly strong Cocaine Bear (NASDAQ:CMCSA), with $11M.
Creed III's opening marked a high point for the Rocky/Creed series and beyond: It's the biggest domestic debut for a sports film.
The Ant-Man sequel, meanwhile, is one of the biggest films of the young year, but it's tracking lighter than previous hits from Marvel, with $186.8M domestically so far and a worldwide $419.6M.
The rest of the weekend' top five added to the number of elective films prevailing in theaters lately. Crunchyroll (SONY) anime Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba - To the Swordsmith Village landed in fourth in its debut outing with $10.1M, while faith-focused Jesus Revolution (LGF.A) (LGF.B)
Creed III may be kicking off a strong month for exhibitors that's packed with sequels: Scream VI (PARA) (PARAA) arrives March 10, followed by Shazam: Fury of the Gods (WBD) on March 17, and John Wick: Chapter 4 (LGF.A) (LGF.B) on March 24.
Cinema tickers: AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC); Cineworld (OTCPK:CNNWQ); Cinemark (CNK); (IMAX); Marcus (MCS); Reading International (RDI); Cineplex (CGX:CA); National CineMedia (NCMI).