Box Office: Matt Damon’s ‘Jason Bourne’ Targets $55 Million, ‘Bad Moms’ Eyes Strong Launch
“Jason Bourne” is heading for a $55 million opening weekend at the domestic box office while “Bad Moms” is generating as much as $35 million, early estimates showed Friday.
Universal’s actioner is performing slightly above forecasts with an opening day taking in about $20 million at 4,026 sites, while STX’s “Bad Moms” will earn as much as $12 million on Friday at 3,215 locations.
Lionsgate’s thriller “Nerve,” which opened Wednesday, will gross an estimated $3 million on Friday at 2,538 theaters for a weekend of up to $9 million and a five-day total of about $15 million.
Matt Damon’s fourth “Bourne” movie took in a solid $4.2 million in Thursday night previews. His last film in the franchise, “The Bourne Ultimatum,” launched domestically with $69.3 million in 2007.
“The Bourne Supremacy” and “The Bourne Ultimatum” helmer Paul Greengrass returns to direct “Jason Bourne,” which also stars Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Vincent Cassel, Julia Stiles, and Riz Ahmed.
Should the early estimates hold, “Jason Bourne” will finish in the same range as Tom Cruise’s “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation,” which opened with $55.5 million over the same weekend last year.
The fourth film in the franchise — “The Bourne Legacy,” starring Jeremy Renner — debuted to $38 million in 2012. The “Bourne” series, launched in 2002 with “The Bourne Identity,” has generated $1.17 billion worldwide thus far.
“Jason Bourne,” which carries a $120 million price tag, has received mixed reviews with a 56% “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Universal will release “Jason Bourne” in 42 international markets over the weekend.
Recent forecasts had projected that “Bad Moms” would generate a $22 million launch on a slim $20 million price tag. The impressive opening is a tonic for two-year-old STX, which saw disappointing returns from Matthew McConaughey’s “Free State of Jones.”
The premise of “Bad Moms” is simple: Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, and Kathryn Hahn portray mothers who decide to cut loose in the face of unrelenting pressure to be the perfect mom. “The Hangover” scripting team of Jon Lucas and Scott Moore wrote and directed the film.
“Bad Moms” may best last weekend’s champ, “Star Trek Beyond,” which is expecting to gross about $30 million at 3,928 sites. That means the 13th chapter in the long-running series will wind up the weekend with about $115 million domestically in its first 10 days.
Lionsgate’s “Nerve,” starring Emma Roberts and Dave Franco, debuted to a respectable $3.8 million at 2,538 U.S. locations on Wednesday.
Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst with comScore, noted that Damon’s “Bourne” films will have probably generated more than $1 billion by the end of the weekend.
“As the character that catapulted the star into the box office stratosphere, the ‘Bourne’ brand remains a strong and compelling attraction to moviegoers looking for an action movie with brains as well as brawn at the summer box office,” he added.
Dergarabedian also said that “Jason Bourne,” “Bad Moms,” and “Nerve” are making for a crowded weekend in the run up to the much-anticipated debut of “Suicide Squad” on Aug. 5. The Warner Bros. tentpole is expected to take in as much as $125 million in its opening weekend.
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