Predator: Badlands clawed its way to the top of the box office, marking a major win for the franchise and a much-needed boost for theaters.
According to Variety, the film dominated the weekend box office with a $40 million domestic debut, setting a new franchise record and ending the industry's recent cold streak. The sci-fi action film surpassed 2004's Alien vs. Predator ($38 million) for the biggest opening in the series' history, which began with the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger classic.
The strong performance comes after a sluggish October that saw a 28-year low in revenues due to a string of underperforming flicks like Tron: Ares and The Smashing Machine.
Predator: Badlands was originally projected to open between $25 million and $30 million and exceeded expectations thanks to positive reviews, an "A-" CinemaScore, and its PG-13 rating.
Variety also reports that premium formats such as IMAX and Dolby contributed 59% of domestic sales. Internationally, the film matched its U.S. tally with another $40 million, for an $80 million global start against a $105 million budget.
The film's success easily outpaced other new releases. Amazon MGM's Sarah's Oil opened in fourth with $4.5 million and earned a rare "A+" CinemaScore, while Nuremberg followed in fifth with $4.1 million. Jennifer Lawrence's Die My Love managed $2.8 million in eighth place, and Sydney Sweeney's Christy debuted with a modest $1.3 million in eleventh.
Holdovers Regretting You and Black Phone 2 claimed second and third place with $7.1 million and $5.3 million, respectively.
