Weekend Actuals: How to Train Your Dragon 3 Soars to $55.0M; Fighting with My Family Expands to $7.8M

Monday Update: Universal’s animated sequel How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World opened above expectations with $55.0M in first place. Projected to open more like $47M, this third installment marks the Dragon franchise’s best opening, even after adjusting for ticket price inflation.

Elsewhere at the box office:

  • Last weekend’s leader, Fox’s sci-fi Alita: Battle Angel, dropped -57% to $12.3M and second place.
  • MGM’s sports movie Fighting With My Family opened with with $7.8M and fourth place, in line with projections.
  • Roadside Attractions’ faith-based Run the Race cracked the top 10, opening in 10th place with $2.1M.
  • Universal’s Green Book, ahead of its Academy Award win for Best Picture, posted by far the lowest percentage drop of any film in top 15. It declined a mild -26%, while the next-mildest drop was -42%.

Comparisons

Total box office this extended weekend was $127.5M.

That’s up +1.0% over last weekend but down -34.8% behind this same weekend last year, when Black Panther led for a second frame with $111.6M.

Year-to-date box office stands at $1.40BM. That’s -24.6% behind this same date last year, down from -22.2% after last weekend.

However, that comparison may be a bit unfair, since 2019 hasn’t seen a release nearly as big as Black Panther. Most analysts are still predicting 2019’s box office to ultimately beat 2018’s.

Demographics

A full demographic breakdown of the top 30 movies this weekend, courtesy of BoxofficeProfile by Vertigo, will be posted here once available.


Monday’s Weekend Actuals (Domestic)

FRI, FEB. 22 – SUN, FEB. 24

WIDE (1000+)

# TITLE WEEKEND LOCATIONS AVG. TOTAL WKS. DIST.
1 How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World $55,022,245 4,259 $12,919 $57,522,245 4 Universal / DreamWorks Animation
2 Alita: Battle Angel $12,342,291 -57% 3,802 12 $3,246 $61,023,359 2 20th Century Fox
3 The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part $9,683,481 -53% 3,833 -470 $2,526 $83,287,520 5 Warner Bros.
4 Fighting With My Family $7,813,113 5530% 2,711 2707 $2,882 $8,028,134 2 MGM
5 Isn’t It Romantic $7,121,121 -50% 3,444 0 $2,068 $33,379,863 2 Warner Bros.
6 What Men Want $5,248,197 -51% 2,389 -523 $2,197 $45,109,263 3 Paramount
7 Happy Death Day 2U $4,888,785 -49% 3,212 5 $1,522 $21,511,665 2 Universal Pictures
8 Cold Pursuit $3,210,838 -46% 2,320 -310 $1,384 $26,996,405 3 Lionsgate / Summit
9 The Upside $3,177,958 -42% 2,148 -633 $1,479 $99,707,367 7 STX Entertainment
10 Green Book $2,128,015 -26% 1,253 -365 $1,698 $69,645,701 15 Universal Pictures
11 Glass $1,769,985 -55% 1,446 -1003 $1,224 $107,935,040 6 Universal
12 The Prodigy $1,122,595 -65% 1,331 -1199 $843 $13,503,116 3 Orion Pictures

LIMITED (100 — 999)

# TITLE WEEKEND LOCATIONS AVG. TOTAL WKS. DIST.
1 Run The Race $2,160,713 853 $2,533 $2,160,713 1 Roadside Attractions
2 Total Dhamaal $989,387 202 $4,898 $989,387 1 FIP
3 Gully Boy $976,466 -52% 269 11 $3,630 $4,216,437 2 Viva Pictures
4 Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse $884,085 -56% 743 -464 $1,190 $184,924,110 11 Sony / Columbia
5 Aquaman $759,715 -59% 741 -523 $1,025 $332,935,262 11 Warner Bros.
6 Vice $633,756 11% 702 0 $903 $47,116,406 9 Annapurna
7 Bohemian Rhapsody $624,525 -36% 424 -138 $1,473 $213,118,025 17 20th Century Fox
8 A Star is Born $610,148 -22% 745 -98 $819 $210,843,346 21 Warner Bros.
9 The 2019 Oscar Nominated Short Films $595,220 -27% 415 45 $1,434 $3,202,651 3 ShortsTV w/ Magnolia Pictures
10 The Favourite $557,077 -14% 288 -36 $1,934 $32,124,805 14 Fox Searchlight
11 They Shall Not Grow Old $540,805 -47% 448 -178 $1,207 $16,400,179 10 Warner Bros.
12 Arctic $498,660 106% 257 194 $1,940 $1,052,465 4 Bleecker Street
13 Ralph Breaks the Internet $375,983 -62% 406 -948 $926 $199,868,950 14 Disney
14 Miss Bala $355,447 -63% 515 -657 $690 $14,619,517 4 Sony Pictures
15 Cold War $300,778 -28% 259 12 $1,161 $4,095,568 10 Amazon Studios
16 A Dog’s Way Home $268,749 -69% 417 -463 $644 $41,177,021 7 Sony Pictures
17 Bumblebee $217,757 -51% 228 -356 $955 $126,928,802 10 Paramount Pictures
18 Escape Room $201,911 -66% 264 -371 $765 $56,134,737 8 Sony Pictures
19 Mary Poppins Returns $194,406 -53% 234 -111 $831 $170,933,659 10 Disney
20 The Mule $176,304 -44% 235 -97 $750 $103,452,217 11 Warner Bros.
21 If Beale Street Could Talk $149,204 -32% 127 -38 $1,175 $14,431,104 11 Annapurna
22 The Wife $148,905 113% 204 127 $730 $9,412,917 28 Sony Pictures Classics
23 Capernaum $128,247 -32% 115 -21 $1,115 $1,228,942 11 Sony Pictures Classics
24 Stan & Ollie $125,408 -50% 128 -82 $980 $5,000,351 9 Sony Pictures Classics
25 On The Basis Of Sex $113,520 -52% 129 -57 $880 $24,476,737 9 Focus Features
26 The Kid Who Would Be King $66,492 -80% 188 -227 $354 $16,581,777 5 20th Century Fox

PLATFORM (1 — 99)

# TITLE WEEKEND LOCATIONS AVG. TOTAL WKS. DIST.
1 Everybody Knows $313,400 63% 71 48 $4,414 $686,221 3 Focus Features
2 Never Look Away $152,914 20% 80 49 $1,911 $469,609 5 Sony Pictures Classics
3 Free Solo $145,681 -23% 90 -18 $1,619 $16,495,602 22 National Geographic Entertainment
4 Uri: The Surgical Strike $73,360 -57% 38 -13 $1,931 $4,309,554 7 PackYourBag Films
5 Lords of Chaos $54,054 6% 70 58 $772 $174,834 3 Gunpowder & Sky
6 Can You Ever Forgive Me? $48,589 -34% 46 -22 $1,056 $8,751,084 19 Fox Searchlight
7 Shoplifters $39,667 -41% 42 -24 $944 $3,159,707 14 Magnolia Pictures
8 Birds of Passage $36,616 59% 10 8 $3,662 $83,353 2 The Orchard
9 The Invisibles $23,913 -27% 18 -1 $1,329 $208,682 5 Greenwich Entertainment
10 To Dust $18,607 -32% 17 3 $1,095 $67,970 3 Good Deed Entertainment
11 Creed II $16,054 -49% 39 -16 $412 $115,690,960 14 MGM / Warner Bros
12 The Last Resort $15,508 -48% 7 2 $2,215 $94,306 10 Kino Lober Films
13 CATVIDEOFEST 2019 $15,060 34% 2 1 $7,530 $38,914 2 Oscilloscope
14 The World Before Your Feet $8,835 120% 6 1 $1,473 $245,244 14 Greenwich Entertainment
15 Serenity $8,170 -63% 22 -41 $371 $8,530,257 5 Aviron Pictures
16 Ruben Brandt, Collector $6,720 11% 3 1 $2,240 $18,032 2 Sony Pictures Classics
17 Wrestle $6,027 1 $6,027 $6,027 1 Oscilloscope Laboratories
18 Burning $5,787 886% 3 1 $1,929 $710,878 18 Well Go USA Entertainment
19 Destroyer $4,045 -49% 4 -11 $1,011 $1,509,540 9 Annapurna Pictures
20 Hotel By The River $3,430 -38% 2 1 $1,715 $12,988 2 Cinema Guild
21 Police Story and Police Story 2 $3,053 -30% 2 -1 $1,527 $58,964 4 Janus Films
22 Sorry Angel $2,445 -63% 1 0 $2,445 $12,841 2 Strand Releasing
23 The Wild Pear Tree $2,368 68% 4 0 $592 $21,930 4 Cinema Guild
24 What Is Democracy? $2,213 74% 2 0 $1,107 $31,138 6 Zeitgeist Films
25 Hale County This Morning, This Evening $2,066 -59% 6 -1 $344 $104,817 24 Cinema Guild
26 Becoming Astrid $1,571 3 $524 $108,444 14 Music Box Films
27 The Heiresses $985 -2% 3 0 $328 $50,252 6 Distrib Films US
28 The Image Book $879 -90% 3 0 $293 $77,025 5 Kino Lorber Films
29 Of Fathers and Sons $279 -24% 3 -1 $93 $12,353 14 Kino Lorber
30 Who Will Write Our History $187 -93% 1 -2 $187 $94,536 6 Abramorama
31 Studio 54 $38 -94% 1 0 $38 $199,663 21 Zeitgeist Films

Sunday Update: Thanks to a string of notable underperformers including Glass, The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part, and Happy Death Day 2U, 2019 got off to a bumpy start at the North American box office. Thankfully, fortunes reversed this weekend with the release of How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, which blasted past expectations to an estimated $55.5 million in its opening frame (a total that doesn’t include $2.5 million from a special Fandango preview screening on February 2), besting the two previous entries in the franchise and injecting new life into a sluggish year at the multiplex. Elsewhere, the Dwayne Johnson wrestling comedy Fighting with My Family performed reasonably well in its wide expansion, while the faith-based football drama Run the Race managed to crack the Top 10 in its debut on 853 screens.

Roaring onto 4,259 screens, How to Train Your Dragon 3 built on goodwill from the last two installments in the popular animated franchise to best expectations and post the highest opening weekend numbers of the year so far. By comparison, 2010’s How to Train Your Dragon and 2014’s How to Train Your Dragon 2 opened to $43.7 million and $49.4 million, respectively, before legging it to $217.5 million and $177 million in North America. Notably, this is the first time Universal has released an installment in the series following their purchase of Dreamworks Animation in 2016 (the first film was released by Paramount and the second by Fox).

Billed as the final installment in the HTTYD series, The Hidden World debuted in North America with its coffers already overflowing from a strong performance over the last several weeks in international markets, where it took in an impressive $180 million-plus prior to the weekend. Stateside, strong critical reviews (it has a score of 91% on Rotten Tomatoes) and pent-up demand from audiences who enjoyed the first two entries (it had a strong showing in our Trailer Impact surveys, with 73% of audiences polled stating their interest in seeing the film) helped push it over the top, allowing it to become the year’s first true blockbuster opening. Additionally, an apparent lack of enthusiasm for The LEGO Movie 2 opened a wider-than-expected berth among family audiences, giving The Hidden World a larger portion of that demo to itself this weekend. Including that $2.5 million in Fandango previews, Dragon‘s total now stands at $58 million through Sunday.

Dropping to second place after a better-than-expected debut last weekend was Alita: Battle Angel, which fell a steep 58% to an estimated $12 million in weekend number two. That gives the Fox sci-fi $60.6 million to date, a number that pales in comparison to its reported $170 million production budget. At this point, international grosses will be key for the James Cameron-produced actioner, which, while apparently well-liked by those who have seen it (opening day audiences awarded it an “A-” Cinemascore, while it boasts a strong 94% Audience Score on Rotten Tomatoes), simply didn’t break out the way it needed to given its hefty price tag.

The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part finished in third place with an estimated $10 million in its third weekend of release, bringing the animated sequel to $83.6 million after 17 days in theaters. The Warner Bros. title is currently running a whopping ?% behind the first LEGO Movie at the same point in its run and ?% behind The LEGO Batman Movie. No doubt, the film took a sizable hit from How to Train Your Dragon 3 this weekend. While it’s on track to top $100 million, LEGO 2 nonetheless counts as a major disappointment for a franchise that already suffered one notable underperformer with 2017’s The LEGO Ninjago Movie.

Fourth place went to Fighting with My Family, which brought in an estimated $8 million in its wide expansion after debuting in just four locations last weekend. That counts as a decent result for the MGM release, which boasts a reported budget of $11 million and which sold to the studio for $17 million back in 2017. The film benefitted from strong reviews (it’s at 91% on Rotten Tomatoes) and the presence of box office-dynamo Dwayne Johnson in the cast. Its total now stands at $8.2 million.

Isn’t It Romantic dropped to fifth place in its sophomore frame with an estimated $7.5 million, bringing the total for the Rebel Wilson rom-com to $33.7 million since debuting on February 13. That’s a 47% dip for the Warner Bros./New Line release, which is performing similarly to this month’s other fantasy rom-com What Men Want.

Speaking of What Men Want, the Taraji P. Henson comedy came in sixth place with an estimated $5.2 million in its third weekend of release, bringing its domestic total to a healthy $45 million after 17 days.

Last weekend’s surprise underperformer Happy Death Day 2U dropped to seventh place in its sophomore frame with an estimated $5 million, bringing the horror sequel to just $21.6 million so far. For the record, that’s several million shy of what the first Happy Death Day made in its opening weekend alone ($26 million). That’s a notable hiccup for a series that was previously being viewed as yet another successful franchise launch for Blumhouse.

Eighth place went to the Liam Neeson action film Cold Pursuit, which brought in an estimated $3.3 million in its third weekend. The Lionsgate/Summit release currently has $27 million in the bank and is performing similarly to last year’s Neeson release The Commuter ($36.3 million total).

Dropping to ninth place was STX’s The Upside, which brought in an estimated $3.2 million in its seventh weekend of release, bringing its total of $99.7 million. This week it will become the fifth $100 million live-action grosser of Hart’s career after Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Ride Along, Central Intelligence, and Scary Movie 3.

Finally, in tenth place, Roadside Attractions’ faith-based sports drama Run the Race (executive-produced by former NFL star and current MLB outfielder Tim Tebow) brought in an estimated $2.2 million on 853 screens. That’s a better debut than last year’s Christian-themed release Indivisible, which opened to $1.5 million on about the same number of screens back in October, but a far cry from Roadside Attractions’ breakout faith-based hit I Can Only Imagine last year. That film opened to $17.1 million last spring and finished its domestic run with $83.4 million.

Overseas Update:

How to Train Your Dragon 3: The Hidden World brought in an estimated $34.7 million overseas this weekend, bringing its international total to a sensational $216.9 million and its worldwide tally to $274.9 million. The animated threequel opens in China on March 1.

Alita: Battle Angel brought in an impressive $92.4 million in 82 markets this weekend, including a $62.3 million debut in China, which counts as Fox’s biggest opening of all time in the country. The film’s international total now stands at $202.7 million, while its global cume is $263.3 million. Notably, 48% of Alita‘s overseas grosses have come from 3D showings, while 10% have come from IMAX.


Sunday’s Studio Weekend Estimates (Domestic)

FRI, FEB. 22 – SUN, FEB. 24

WIDE (1000+)

# TITLE WEEKEND LOCATIONS AVG. TOTAL WKS. DIST.
1 How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World $55,530,000 4,259 $13,038 $55,530,000 4 Universal / DreamWorks Animation
2 Alita: Battle Angel $12,000,000 -58% 3,802 12 $3,156 $60,681,068 2 20th Century Fox
3 The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part $10,015,000 -52% 3,833 -470 $2,613 $83,619,039 5 Warner Bros.
4 Fighting With My Family $8,012,000 5673% 2,711 2707 $2,955 $8,227,021 2 MGM
5 Isn’t It Romantic $7,510,000 -47% 3,444 0 $2,181 $33,768,742 2 Warner Bros.
6 What Men Want $5,200,000 -51% 2,389 -523 $2,177 $45,061,066 3 Paramount
7 Happy Death Day 2U $4,990,000 -47% 3,212 5 $1,554 $21,612,880 2 Universal Pictures
8 Cold Pursuit $3,300,000 -45% 2,320 -310 $1,422 $27,085,567 3 Lionsgate / Summit
9 The Upside $3,210,000 -42% 2,148 -633 $1,494 $99,739,409 7 STX Entertainment
10 Green Book $2,090,000 -28% 1,253 -365 $1,668 $69,607,686 15 Universal Pictures
11 Glass $1,764,000 -55% 1,446 -1003 $1,220 $107,929,055 6 Universal

LIMITED (100 — 999)

# TITLE WEEKEND LOCATIONS AVG. TOTAL WKS. DIST.
1 Run The Race $2,273,050 853 $2,665 $2,273,050 1 Roadside Attractions
2 Total Dhamaal $950,000 202 $4,703 $950,000 1 FIP
3 Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse $865,000 -57% 743 -464 $1,164 $184,905,025 11 Sony / Columbia
4 Aquaman $765,000 -59% 741 -523 $1,032 $332,940,547 11 Warner Bros.
5 Vice $731,391 28% 702 0 $1,042 $47,214,041 9 Annapurna
6 A Star is Born $700,000 -10% 745 -98 $940 $210,933,198 21 Warner Bros.
7 Bohemian Rhapsody $645,000 -34% 424 -138 $1,521 $213,138,500 17 20th Century Fox
8 The 2019 Oscar Nominated Short Films $598,000 -27% 410 40 $1,459 $3,205,431 3 ShortsTV w/ Magnolia Pictures
9 They Shall Not Grow Old $550,000 -46% 448 -178 $1,228 $16,409,374 10 Warner Bros.
10 The Favourite $540,000 -16% 288 -36 $1,875 $32,107,728 14 Fox Searchlight
11 Arctic $522,452 116% 257 194 $2,033 $1,076,257 4 Bleecker Street
12 Ralph Breaks the Internet $399,000 -60% 406 -948 $983 $199,891,967 14 Disney
13 Miss Bala $350,000 -63% 515 -657 $680 $14,614,070 4 Sony Pictures
14 Cold War $330,421 -21% 259 12 $1,276 $4,125,211 10 Amazon Studios
15 A Dog’s Way Home $262,000 -70% 417 -463 $628 $41,170,272 7 Sony Pictures
16 Bumblebee $210,000 -53% 228 -356 $921 $126,921,045 10 Paramount Pictures
17 Mary Poppins Returns $195,000 -53% 234 -111 $833 $170,934,253 10 Disney
18 Escape Room $195,000 -68% 264 -371 $739 $56,127,826 8 Sony Pictures
19 If Beale Street Could Talk $176,729 -19% 127 -38 $1,392 $14,458,629 11 Annapurna
20 The Wife $153,250 119% 204 127 $751 $9,417,262 28 Sony Pictures Classics
21 Capernaum $133,310 -30% 115 -21 $1,159 $1,234,005 11 Sony Pictures Classics
22 Stan & Ollie $126,335 -49% 128 -82 $987 $5,001,278 9 Sony Pictures Classics
23 On The Basis Of Sex $120,000 -49% 129 -57 $930 $24,483,217 9 Focus Features

PLATFORM (1 — 99)

# TITLE WEEKEND LOCATIONS AVG. TOTAL WKS. DIST.
1 Everybody Knows $355,000 84% 71 48 $5,000 $727,821 3 Focus Features
2 Never Look Away $167,599 31% 80 49 $2,095 $484,294 5 Sony Pictures Classics
3 Free Solo $138,800 -26% 90 -18 $1,542 $16,488,721 22 National Geographic Entertainment
4 Lords of Chaos $60,027 18% 70 58 $858 $180,807 3 Gunpowder & Sky
5 The Iron Orchard $49,250 8 $6,156 $49,250 1 mTuckman Media
6 Birds of Passage $40,097 74% 10 8 $4,010 $81,959 2 The Orchard
7 The Invisibles $23,600 -28% 19 0 $1,242 $208,369 5 Greenwich Entertainment
8 To Dust $19,927 -27% 17 3 $1,172 $69,290 3 Good Deed Entertainment
9 Wrestle $7,100 1 $7,100 $7,100 1 Oscilloscope Laboratories
10 Ruben Brandt, Collector $6,913 15% 3 1 $2,304 $18,225 2 Sony Pictures Classics
11 CATVIDEOFEST 2019 $6,125 -46% 2 1 $3,063 $29,979 2 Oscilloscope