'Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald' opened at the box office last Friday and the weekend figures are in.
While it topped the box office, its opening came in below projected figures. Moreover, it had the lowest debut yet for a film set in author and screenwriter J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world.
Domestically the film grossed $62.2 million at thew box office. Opening at 4,163 theaters across the U.S. and Canada, it had been forecast to make $65-75 million.
To compare, 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them', opened with $74.4 million in 2016. The lowest opening for a Harry Potter-related film had been 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix' at $77.1 million.
Overseas, the film did much better. It grossed $191 million outside the US, bringing its totals to $253.2 million.
'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald' has been getting mixed to negative reviews (read our review here).
The domestic box office figures could be a sign that critics do have an influence on audience attendance after all. The relevance of reviews has been questioned of late following the success of both 'Venom' and 'Bohemian Rhapsody' in spite of negative reviews.
Mind you, 'Widows' is an example of a film that has been struggling at the box office in spite of a positive critical reception. It is currently fifth in the US box office, with an estimated $12.3 million (on 2,803 screens).
Meanwhile, 'The Grinch' is second place with about $38.2 million. 'Bohemian Rhapsody' is still going strong in third ($15.7 million). Rounding out the top five in fourth place is 'Instant Family' ($14.7 million), which arrives in Irish cinemas in the new year.
