Keke Palmer’s buddy comedy “One of Them Days” debuted at first on the North American box office charts over a particularly slow Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend.
The R-rated Sony release earned $11.6 million from 2,675 theaters, beating Disney’s “Mufasa: The Lion King” by a hair, according to studio estimates Sunday. However, by the end of Monday’s holiday, “Mufasa” would have the edge.
“One of Them Days” cost just $14 million to produce, which is expected to be earned by Monday. The highly-reviewed buddy comedy stars Palmer and SZA as friends and roommates who are struggling to get money for rent before being evicted by their landlord. Notably, it is the first black female-led dramatic comedy since “Girls Trip” in 2017 and currently has a 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
But the market was also quite weak overall. According to comScore data, the total box office for Friday, Saturday and Sunday will fall just under $80 million, making it one of the worst Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekends since 1997.
“It was a great weekend for a film as individual as ‘One of Them Days,'” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at comScore. “You can still find success stories in low-grossing weekends for movie theaters.”
The Walt Disney Co.’s “Mufasa” was second for the weekend with $11.5 million, its fifth run in theaters. Globally, the prequel directed by Barry Jenkins has grossed $588 million. It also beat out a brand new offering, the Blumhouse horror “The Wolf Man,” which debuted in third place with $10.6 million from 3,354 North American theaters.
Writer-director Lee Whannell’s monster story starring Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner didn’t enter theaters with good reviews. It currently holds 53% on Rotten Tomatoes. Reviews don’t typically affect the success of horror films in their first weekend, but audiences also gave it a weak C-Cinemascore in exit polls. The Blumhouse production and Universal Pictures’ release reportedly cost $25 million to make and is expected to reach $12 million by the end of Monday’s holiday season.
“Sonic the Hedgehog 3” was fourth with $8.6 million and “Den of Thieves 2” rounded out the top five with $6.6 million.
In special releases, Brady Corbert’s 215-minute post-war epic “The Brutalist” expanded to 388 screens, where it grossed nearly $2 million over the weekend. A24 reported that its various 70 mm and IMAX showings sold out. The studio re-released its Colman Domingo drama “Sing Sing” in theaters and prisons, where more than 1 million prisoners in 46 states were able to see the film.
The Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend has had great successes in the past. Dergarabedian mentioned “Bad Boys for Life,” which had a three-day debut of $62.5 million in 2020, and “American Sniper,” which made $89.3 in its first weekend in wide release in 2016.
“This is a year that’s going to get a massive boost starting with ‘Captain America: Brave New World’ and ‘Paddington in Peru’ in February,” Dergarabedian said.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to comScore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. “One of Those Days,” $11.6 million.
2. “Mufasa: The Lion King,” $11.5 million.
3. “The Wolf Man,” $10.6 million.
4. “Sonic the Hedgehog 3,” $8.6 million.
5. “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera,” $6.6 million.
6. “Moana 2,” $6.1 million.
7. “Nosferatu,” $4.3 million.
8. “A Complete Unknown,” $3.8 million.
9. “Wicked,” $3.6 million.
10. “Babygirl,” $2 million.
