Warner Bros.’ “The Suicide Squad” is poised to come out on top of the subdued domestic box office this weekend, with an estimated three-day gross of $25.65 million.
Though the R-rated superhero film is now expected to fall short of previous industry predictions that it would gross over $30 million in its first weekend, “The Suicide Squad” is still set to top the box office by a margin of $10 million. As the delta variant causes COVID-19 concerns to rise in the U.S., it’s possible that moviegoers are opting to stay inside this weekend and enjoy the James Gunn-directed film from the comfort of their homes on HBO Max, where it is also available to stream.
“The Suicide Squad” is the latest big-screen take on the DC team of anti-heroes, starring Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, John Cena, Joel Kinnaman and Sylvester Stallone. On Friday, the film opened to $12 million from 4,002 theaters, and has received favorable reviews from critics and audience members alike.
Coming in behind “The Suicide Squad” is Disney’s “The Jungle Cruise,” based on the theme park ride of the same name. Starring Emily Blunt and Dwayne Johnson, in its second weekend the movie is expected to pull in an additional $14.9 million, bringing its overall earnings up to $64.5 million.
M. Night Shyamalan’s “Old” is poised to secure the No. 3 spot on the box office chart, and should add another $3.82 million to its haul, pushing it to $38.2 million. After “Old” comes “Black Widow,” the Marvel film starring Scarlett Johansson that has recently become the center of a lawsuit over its release strategy. “Black Widow” should make another $3.59 million this weekend, bringing its total to $173.9 million, a healthy haul for pandemic times.
“Stillwater,” directed by Tom McCarthy and starring Matt Damon, rounds out this weekend’s expected top five, having brought in $770,000 on Friday for an estimated weekend cume of $9.5 million. The film, which held its premiere at Cannes, stars Damon as a Trump-supporting oil worker who travels to Marseille, France to visit his estranged daughter, who is serving a prison sentence.