North American Box Office Results

Weekend Highlights

Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance, the Cannes best screenplay and TIFF People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award winner that has propelled Demi Moore into the awards conversion, opened in sixth place at the North American box office over the weekend.

Released through Mubi, the body horror about an ageing actress whose regenerative treatment goes awry opened in 1,949 locations on an estimated $3.1m.

The Substance also stars Margaret Qualley and Dennis Quaid. Mubi said the film over-indexed in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin, Seattle, Portland, Denver, and Boston.

Top 5 Films

Warner Bros’ Beetlejuice Beetlejuice was a surprise number one and narrowly stayed top in its third session as $26m from 4,172 sites pushed the running total to an excellent $226.8m.

Paramount’s Transformers One was expected to dethrone Tim Burton’s comedy horror but, despite strong reviews, the animation featuring Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry and Scarlett Johansson debuted at number two on an estimated $25m from 3,978 sites.

That said, the studio’s executives are hopeful strong word of mouth will ensure the latest entry in the Transformers canon holds well in the coming weeks and fulfils its potential as an awards season prospect.

Placing third was Universal/Blumhouse’s psychological thriller Speak No Evil, the remake of the Danish 2022 film of the same name about a family visiting friends who realise their hosts are not what they thought. James McAvoy stars in the new film, which earned $5.9m for a $21.5m cumulative tally.

Halle Berry survival thriller Never Let Me Go arrived in fourth place through Lionsgate on a lacklustre $4.5m from 4,667 sites. Disney/Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine placed fifth on $3.9m from 2,450 for $627.3m after nine weekends.

New Releases

A24 opened Aaron Schimberg’s Sundance dark comedy A Different Man starring Sebastian Stan as a man with facial disfigurement who undergoes a miraculous treatment only to discover it was not the answer to his problems.

The limited release earned $56,126 from four screens and will expand next weekend. Adam Pearson and Renate Reinsve also star.

Box Office Year-to-Date

As of September 20, North American box office year to date trailed 2023 by 12.8%.

Conclusion

The North American box office saw a mix of new releases and established films performing well over the weekend. While Beetlejuice Beetlejuice maintained its top spot, Transformers One debuted strongly and Speak No Evil placed third. The box office year-to-date continues to trail 2023, but the industry remains hopeful for a strong finish to the year.

FAQs

* What was the top-performing film at the North American box office over the weekend?
+ Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
* Which film debuted at number two on the box office chart?
+ Transformers One
* What was the estimated total gross for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice over the weekend?
+ $26m
* Which film earned $5.9m and placed third on the box office chart?
+ Speak No Evil