Alien: Romulus, the latest installment in its 45-year-old franchise, opened in first place at the North American box office. The 20th Century Studios release earned an estimated $41.5 million in its first weekend, playing in 3,885 locations in the US and Canada. Including $66.7 million from international showings in 49 markets, Alien: Romulus boasted a $108.2 million global debut. The Walt Disney Co., which owns 20th Century Studios, claimed the top two spots on the charts, with Marvel's Deadpool & Wolverine, in its fourth weekend, taking second place with $29 million. The company has been responsible for an estimated 42% of the industry's summer box office haul, including hits Inside Out 2 and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.
August can often be slow for the movie business, or, less charitably, a dumping ground. But while 2024 has lagged overall, a string of recent hits including Deadpool & Wolverine and It Ends With Us helped build a momentum that put this late August weekend over 30% ahead of the same weekend last year. It's also up over 10% from August 2019. Fede Álvarez directed Alien: Romulus, set around the time of Alien and Aliens, and recruited a cast of up-and-coming 20-somethings to lead the cast including Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, and Isabela Merced. The sci-fi film embraces the franchise's horror roots. Reviews have been mostly positive, with an 81% on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences gave it a B+ CinemaScore.
Below are estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at US and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
- Alien: Romulus, $41.5 million.
- Deadpool & Wolverine, $29 million.
- It Ends With Us, $24 million.
- Twisters, $9.8 million.
- Coraline, $8.6 million.
- Despicable Me 4, $6 million.
- Trap, $3.4 million.
- Inside Out 2, $3.2 million.
- Borderlands, $2.4 million.
- Stree 2, $2.2 million.
(More
box office stories.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
