'Good Boys' posts a surprising #1 at the box office

“Good Boys” brought in $21 million at the box office. “Where’d You Go, Bernadette,” “47 Meters Down: Uncaged” and “Blinded by the Light” disappoint.

Aug. 18, 2019 11:15 AM PT

Despite five new wide releases opening this weekend, only one managed to make an impression at the box office.

Universal’s R-rated comedy “Good Boys” opened in first place with $21 million, surpassing analyst projections of $12 million to $15 million, according to estimates from measurement firm Comscore.

The film’s result makes it the best original comedy opening of the year as well as the first R-rated comedy to open at No. 1 since the studio released “The Boss” in 2016. Universal now has the two biggest original comedy openings this year with “Good Boys” and “Little.”

Produced by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, “Good Boys” stars Jacob Tremblay, Keith L. Williams and Brady Noon as three precocious 12-year-old boys getting ready for their first kissing party. Directed by Gene Stupnitsky in his feature directorial debut, it was well-received with a B+ CinemaScore and an 80% “fresh” rating on review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.

“Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg flawlessly depict an awkward phase that everyone can relate to with not only outrageous laughs but quite a bit of heart as well,” said Jim Orr, Universal’s distribution chief. “Further, when you have Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, the creative minds behind some of the most iconic comedies of the last decade, there’s no doubt people will be talking about this one for a long time.”

Universal has distributed the biggest original comedy openings of the past three years with this film, including last year’s “Blockers” ($20.5 million) and “Night School” ($27.2 million) and 2017’s surprise hit “Girls Trip” ($31.2 million). The latter two films were the highest-grossing domestic comedies of their respective years. “Universal has a rich history of successful comedies,” said Orr. “To be able to add ‘Good Boys’ to our canon is amazing.

The studio now matches Disney with six films that have opened at No. 1 this year: “Good Boys,” “Glass,” “Us,” “How to Train Your Dragon 3,” “Secret Life of Pets 2” and “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw.” Its films have also spent a total of 10 weeks at the top of the domestic box office and have crossed the $1-billion milestone domestically, rivaling only Disney.

In second place, Universal’s “Hobbs & Shaw” added $14.1 million in its third weekend for a cumulative $133.7 million. Globally, the film has reached $437 million in worldwide receipts.

At No. 3, Disney’s “The Lion King” added $11.9 million in its fifth weekend for a cumulative $496.1 million. The film has earned $1.43 billion to date worldwide.

In fourth place, Sony’s “The Angry Birds Movie 2” earned $10.5 million over the weekend after opening on Tuesday for a cumulative $16.2 million. It was well-received with a B+ CinemaScore and a 76% “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but fell well short of its predecessor’s $38.2-million opening in May 2016.

Rounding out the top five, CBS Films, eOne and Lionsgate’s “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark” added $10 million in its second weekend (a 52% drop) for a cumulative $40.2 million.

At No. 6, Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures’ “47 Meters Down: Uncaged” opened below expectations of $11 million to $14 million with $9 million. It earned many negative reviews with a 50% “rotten” rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a C+ CinemaScore. Its predecessor “47 Meters Down” opened with $11 million in 2017 on its way to $44 million.

In seventh place, Paramount’s “Dora and the Lost City of Gold” added $8.5 million in its second weekend, a 51% drop, for a cumulative $33.9 million.

At No. 8, Sony’s “Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood” added $7.6 million in its fourth weekend for a cumulative $114.3 million.

In ninth place, Warner Bros.’ and New Line Cinema’s “Blinded by the Light” opened with $4.4 million.

Directed by Gurinder Chadha (“Bend It Like Beckham”), the film follows a Pakistani teenager in Britain who turns to the music of Bruce Springsteen to cope with racial and economic turmoil. Despite the poor box office result, it was well-received with an A- CinemaScore and a 90% “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

At No. 10, Fox’s “The Art of Racing in the Rain” added $4.4 million in its second weekend (a 46% drop) for a cumulative $16.9 million.

Opening outside of the top 10, Annapurna and United Artists Releasing’s “Where’d You Go, Bernadette” opened with $3.4 million.

Directed by Richard Linklater, the film stars Cate Blanchett as an agoraphobic mother who suddenly goes missing on the eve of a family vacation to Antarctica. It earned tepid reviews with a B CinemaScore and a 43% “rotten” rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

In limited release, Sony Pictures Classics opened “Aquarela” in five locations to $23,474 for a per-screen average of $4,693 and the Cinema Guild opened “End of the Century” in one location to $10,398.

Trafalgar Releasing’s BTS documentary “Bring the Soul: The Movie” added $190,407 in its second weekend across 341 locations for a per-screen average of $407 and a cumulative $4.7 million.

Neon’s “Luce” added 34 locations (for a total of 58) and $163,965 for a per-screen average of $2,827 and a cumulative $530,402. The studio also expanded “Honeyland” into 32 locations to $56,997 for a per-screen average of $1,781 and a cumulative $211,721.

Sony Pictures Classics’ “After the Wedding” added 21 locations (for a total of 26) and $86,957 for a per-screen average of $3,345 and a cumulative $159,378.

This week, Lionsgate opens “Angel Has Fallen” while Sony and Affirm Films release the drama “Overcomer.” In limited release, Amazon Studios reveals the dramedy “Brittany Runs a Marathon.”