Mel Gibson and Mark Wahlberg‘s “Flight Risk” is facing no traffic on the runway, lifting off to an easy No. 1 opening in what is turning out to be another sleepy weekend at the January box office. The Lionsgate thriller carried on $4.4 million from 3,161 locations across Friday and preview screenings.
Even at that modest gross, it’ll be Lionsgate’s second No. 1 debut of the year after “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera.” A three-day opening north of $11 million is now projected, though there’s potential turbulence ahead. NFL conference championships could keep a significant fraction of viewers out of theaters on Sunday, but the warning signs aren’t just outside multiplexes. Lionsgate held the review embargo for “Flight Risk” until preview screenings for a reason — critics have largely torn apart the movie, which marks Gibson’s directorial follow-up to his Oscar-nominated 2016 war drama “Hacksaw Ridge.”
Audiences aren’t on board either, with moviegoer pollster Cinema Score turning in a rough C grade. “Flight Risk” is likely in an alright enough position either way; it’s a modestly budgeted thriller and Lionsgate typically covers financial risks by selling off foreign rights to its films before release. But if the projections dip in altitude, exhibitors are in danger of a weekend without a single film grossing in the eight digits. That hasn’t happened since the second weekend of Apple’s flop franchise starter “Argylle” last February.
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And it’s not for lack of new releases either. Neon’s “Presence” is vying for fifth place after earning roughly $1.3 million across Friday and previews. Playing in 1,750 locations, the horror film sees director Steven Soderbergh armed with another typically eye-catching formal premise, this time shooting the entire film from the perspective of a ghost. “Presence” earned strong notices when it premiered a year ago at the previous edition of Sundance. General audiences are more indifferent. Cinema Score notched a C+ grade, though horror tends to skew controversial. Neon purchased the film out of its festival premiere for an undisclosed figure.
Further outside the top five, Angel Studios is back in theaters this weekend with “Brave the Dark,” playing 2,230 locations and earning about $920,000 across Friday and previews. The drama, which stars Jared Harris as an English teacher who begins to look after his troubled student (Nicholas Hamilton), first debuted at the Heartland Film Festival back in October 2023. Reviews lean positive, but Angel has again fully delivered for its target audience, which was polled to a glowing A grade on Cinema Score.
Back up the charts, “Mufasa: The Lion King” will lay claim to second place after earning another $1.9 million on Friday. The photorealistic CG-animated prequel has a shot at surpassing a $220 million domestic total through the end of this sixth weekend of release. After an underwhelming opening, the Disney release has shown good staying power, taking advantage of January’s lack of competition.
Sony’s “One of Them Days” gets bronze, earning another $2.3 million Friday and projecting $7.2 million for its second weekend. That would mark a healthy 40% drop from its debut. The SZA and Keke Palmer comedy will get past a $24 million domestic total through its first 10 days of release.
“Sonic the Hedgehog 3” is in fourth place, projected to ring in another $5.1 million in its sixth weekend in theaters. The latest adventure featuring Sega’s iconic video game speedster will get past a $225 million domestic total this outing, settling in as the ninth-highest-grossing title of 2024.
Universal and Blumhouse’s “Wolf Man” could push for fifth place if “Presence” doesn’t snag the horror crowd. Bad buzz has caught up to the cabin thriller though, which is projecting $3 million and a 72% drop in its second weekend. The domestic total should inch to $17 million this weekend, with not much left in the tank.
“Moana 2,” somehow, is also in the mix for the top five — in its ninth weekend of release. The Disney sequel added $850,000 on Friday. When movies released more than two months ago are still around the top of the charts, the market has truly gone silent.