“Alien: Romulus,” the latest addition to the long-running franchise, debuted at the top of the North American box office charts. The film brought in an estimated $41.5 million during its opening weekend in 3,885 theaters in the U.S. and Canada. When combining its international earnings from 49 markets, the movie amassed a global total of $108.2 million. The parent company, Walt Disney Co., claimed both the first and second positions at the box office with “Alien: Romulus” and Marvel’s “Deadpool & Wolverine” respectively, contributing significantly to the overall summer box office success, alongside hits like “Inside Out 2” and “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.”
Despite historically being a slow month for the film industry, August of 2024 has shown promise with successful releases like “Deadpool & Wolverine” and “It Ends With Us.” This has led to a strong weekend turnout, surpassing the figures from the same period last year by over 30%, and exceeding numbers from August 2019 by more than 10%.
Directed by Fede Álvarez, “Alien: Romulus” is set within the timeline of “Alien” and “Aliens,” featuring a young cast led by Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, and Isabela Merced. The sci-fi movie, which delves into horror elements characteristic of Álvarez’s previous works like “Evil Dead” and “Don’t Breathe,” maintains the franchise’s roots in the horror genre. Critical reception has been mostly positive, with an 81% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, paired with a B+ CinemaScore from audiences.
In the third spot, the romantic drama “It Ends With Us” raked in $24 million, marking a slight decline from its strong opening weekend. The Sony production, starring Blake Lively and directed by Justin Baldoni, has garnered $97.8 million in total earnings against a modest $25 million budget. The film, based on the bestselling novel by Colleen Hoover, follows the story of Lily Bloom (Lively) navigating a complex relationship with Ryle Kincaid (Baldoni).
Other noteworthy contenders in the weekend box office included “Twisters” in fourth place with $9.8 million and “Coraline” in fifth place following its re-release for its 15th anniversary. “Borderlands,” featuring Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, and Jamie Lee Curtis, gathered $2.4 million in its second weekend, bringing its cumulative earnings to $13.5 million against a reported budget of $120 million.