Warner Bros. continues its day-n-date release strategy with the reboot of Mortal Kombat [MK3]. After spawning two films during the 1990s, the videogame franchise has remained popular with the release of a new game roughly every two years. Unlike the previous PG-13 installments, the new Mortal Kombat embraces the game’s bloody violence with its R rating. The redband footages have pleased the target male fanbase, but the rating could limit the audience. Rather than casting stars, the film assembled up-and-comers for characters already well known to fans. Playing in 3073 theaters, Mortal Kombat could finish with $19 million.
Demon Slayer The Movie: Mugen Train [DSMMT] is the feature film continuation of the hit anime series. The animated film opened in Japan in October and became the top grossing film of all times. The anticipation from its fanbase has been evident in advance ticket sales where Demon Slayer is outpacing Mortal Kombat. A previous FUNimation release, Dragon Ball Super: Broly took in $9.8 million from 1238 theaters during its first weekend in 2018. Arriving in 1500 theaters with showings starting Thursday night, Demon Slayer The Movie: Mugen Train could pull in $10 million.
With two new challengers, Godzilla vs. Kong [GOVKO] looks to be knocked down to the third spot at around $4.0 million.
Ed Helms stars in the R-rated Together Together [TOGTH], which Bleecker Street acquired after its premiere at this year’s Sundance. Targeted at indie film fans rather than a broad audience, the dramedy has earned rave reviews. Showing in 665 theaters, Together Together may deliver $750K.
That’s the whisper from the virtual trading floor.
Tag(s): MK3, DSMMT, GOVKO, TOGTH