Theater counts: Romulus ends Deadpool’s reign as widest release

August 22, 2024

A new contender took the top spot at the weekend box office last weekend, as Alien: Romulus debuted to just over $42 million from 3,885 theaters in its opening foray. The latest in the Alien franchise, Romulus overtook its studio kinsman, as Deadpool & Wolverine slipped to second after a stint of three weekends topping the chart. This weekend not only sees a trio of wide releases arrive in theaters, but could witness a return to number one at the box office for Deadpool & Wolverine. We’ll have our full prediction tomorrow, but the theater counts released today give us some pointers.

New to theaters this weekend is the Zoë Kravitz-directed Blink Twice. Starting out in 3,067 locations, the psychological thriller follows a cocktail waitress who experiences troubling occurrences after visiting a tech billionaire on his private island. The film marks Kravitz’s first attempt behind the camera after acting in numerous films, including most recently, 2022’s The Batman. Blink Twice features Naomi Ackie and Channing Tatum as the lead roles, while featuring Christian Slater and Alia Shawkat, among others.

Also opening in wide release this weekend is The Crow. The gothic film follows a murdered musician who, after being resurrected, embarks on a merciless rampage to take revenge on the killers, traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to put the wrong things right. The film stars FKA Twigs, and Bill Skarsgård as the titular character, and will make its theatrical debut in 2,752 movie houses. The reboot will be available in both traditional formats and IMAX screens.

Lastly, launching in 1,818 cinemas this weekend, is the Christian drama The Forge. The movie follows a recent high school graduate who, after being challenged by his mother and a successful local businessman, discovers God’s purpose for his life is so much more than he could have hoped or imagined.

Rounding out the top five this weekend in terms of theaters is the current box office champ, as Alien: Romulus, which slips into the top spot by adding 30 locations for a total of 3,915. The change in position is more due to the loss of 120 theaters for Deadpool & Wolverine this weekend. The Disney hit will play in a still widely-available 3,840 venues. Occupying the third-place spot is It Ends With Us, adding 100 locations in its third weekend, available in 3,839 cinemas. Lastly, still spinning its way in a solid 3,198 theaters is Twisters, owning the spot as the fourth-widest release in North America.

Looking ahead to next week we see the introduction of six new wide releases. The sci-fi horror feature AfrAId is projected to begin its theatrical run in approximately 3,000 locations, while Los Angeles-set drama 1992 is expected to arrive in approximately 800 theaters. Other films making their theatrical entry are City of Dreams, You Gotta Believe, Slingshot, and Reagan.

Filed under: Theater Counts, Alien, Crow, Deadpool, Twister, Alia Shawkat, Christian Slater, Channing Tatum, Zoë Kravitz, Bill Skarsgård, Naomi Ackie, FKA Twigs