Universal’s divisive Broadway adaptationDear Evan Hansenfell short of industry expectations and opened at the number two spot with $7.5 million from 3,364 theaters in its opening weekend. This cleared the path for Marvel’sShang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Ringsto claim the number one spot for the fourth weekend in a row. The film made another $13.3 million, bringing its domestic total to within touching distance of the $200 million-mark. The Marvel movie currently sits at a healthy $196.5 million, making it the highest-grossing film of the year domestically.
The underwhelming box office performance ofDear Evan Hansen, directed byThe Perks of Being a WallflowerhelmerStephen Chbosky, cements the hit-or-miss nature of musical adaptations. While it isn’t going to lose Universal hundreds of millions of dollars like the similarly reviledCatsadaptation, it won’t perform like the sleeper hitThe Greatest Showmaneither.
Earlier this year, Warner Bros' well-receivedIn the Heightsfailed to recover its reported $55 million budget — nearly double that ofDear Evan Hansen— when it tapped out with $43 million worldwide.
RELATED:‘Dear Evan Hansen’ Review: A Misguided Misfire of Monumental Proportions
But unlikeIn the Heights,Dear Evan Hansenis coming off of someparticularly nasty reviewsand crucially, hasn’t been given a simultaneous streaming release. The film’s CinemaScore (A-) is significantly better than its Rotten Tomatoes rating (33%), which suggests that opening day audiences were less bothered by starBen Platt’s castingthan most critics.
DirectorShawn Levy’s video game-inspiredFree Guy, starringRyan Reynolds, finished at the number three spot. The film added another $4.14 million to its account, for a running total of $114 million in its seventh week, and remains one of the summer’s bonafide box office hits.
The number four spot went to directorNia DaCosta’sCandyman, which added another $2.5 million for a domestic total of $56.8 million after four weeks. And rounding out the top five wasClint Eastwood’sCry Macho, which fell over 50% after week one, and made $2.1 million in its second weekend. Like every Warner Bros. movie this year,Cry Machowas also released day-and-date on the HBO Max streaming service, and currently sits at $8.4 million domestic.
All eyes will now be on the coming few weeks, with big-ticket titles such asNo Time to Die,Venom: Let There be CarnageandDuneslated for release.
KEEP READING:Ben Platt on ‘Dear Evan Hansen,’ How He Can Sing Through Tears, and the Changes From the Stage
