After shattering box office records last weekend with an amazing debut of $174.4 million, nothing was expected to stand in the way of a second straight weekend win for Beauty and the Beast. The live action fairy tale adaptation squared off against three newcomers this weekend, Lionsgate's Power Rangers, Sony's Life and Warner Bros.' CHiPs, although, as expected, none of these new releases managed to come close to Beauty and the Beast. The Disney blockbuster easily won its second weekend in a row with an estimated $88.3 million.
Last weekend, this long-awaited live-action adaptation broke Batman v Superman's record for largest March opening ever, and it also broke records for the largest debut for a PG movie, and had the biggest IMAX debut ever for a PG film as well. While it only opened against one other movie last weekend, the R-rated thriller The Belko Experiment, which debuted in roughly 1/4th of the theaters Beauty and the Beast was in, this live-action fairy tale will have much more competition heading into its second weekend, facing Lionsgate's Power Rangers, Sony's Life, Warner Bros.' CHiPs and River Rain's sports drama Slamma Jamma, although Slamma Jamma only opened in 502 theaters, falling just short of the top 10, in 11th place with $1.6 million.
Box Office Mojo reports that Beauty and the Beast dropped 49.4% this weekend, remaining in 4,210 theaters for an impressive $20,985 per-screen average during its second weekend in theaters. This weekend's tally pushes its domestic gross to $316.9 million, with its worldwide haul now at $690.2 million, from a $160 million budget. Of these new releases, Sony's sci-fi thriller Life is the only one that found critical approval, with a solid 67% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The long-awaited Power Rangers remake earned mixed reviews with just a 46% rating on RT, with the CHiPs remake only scoring a 20% rating on RT.
While coming in a distant second place, the Power Rangers remake still had an impressive showing in second place with $40.5 million, earning $10,967 per-screen average from 3,693 theaters. Directed by Dean Israelite, the film stars Dacre Montgomery, Naomi Scott, RJ Cyler, Becky G and Ludi Lin as the Power Rangers and also features Bill Hader as Alpha 5, Bryan Cranston as Zordon and Elizabeth Banks as Rita Repulsa. The movie follows five ordinary teens who must become something extraordinary when they learn that their small town of Angel Grove, and the world, is on the verge of being obliterated by an alien threat. Chosen by destiny, our heroes quickly discover they are the only ones who can save the planet. But to do so, they will have to overcome their real-life issues and before it's too late, and band together as the Power Rangers.
Life came in far below expectations, opening in fourth place with $12.6 million, behind Kong: Skull Island, which dropped to third place with $14.4 million. Life is a terrifying sci-fi thriller about a team of scientists aboard the International Space Station whose mission of discovery turns to one of primal fear when they find a rapidly evolving life form that caused extinction on Mars, and now threatens the crew and all life on Earth. The film stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds, Hiroyuki Sanada, Ariyon Bakare, and Olga Dihovichnaya. It is directed by Daniel Espinosa, written by Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick, and produced by David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Bonnie Curtis and Julie Lynn. Executive producers are Don Granger and Vicki Dee Rock.
Warner Bros.' theatrical reboot of the hit TV series CHiPs debuted in seventh place with $7.6 million. Jon Baker and Frank "Ponch" Poncherello have just joined the California Highway Patrol (CHP) in Los Angeles but for very different reasons. Baker is a beaten up pro motorbiker trying to put his life and marriage back together. Poncherello is a cocky undercover Federal agent investigating a multi-million dollar heist that may be an inside job-inside the CHP. The inexperienced rookie and hardened pro are teamed together, but clash more than click, so kickstarting a partnership is easier said than done. But with Baker's bike skills combined with Ponch's street savvy it might just work...if they don't drive each other crazy along the way.
The top 10 is rounded out by Kong: Skull Island ($14.4 million), Life ($12.6 million), Logan ($10.1 million), Get Out $8.6 million), CHiPs ($7.6 million), The Shack ($3.7 million), The LEGO Batman Movie ($1.9 million) and The Belko Experiment ($1.8 million). Also opening in limited release this weekend will be Fox Searchlight's Wilson, which earned $330,000 from 310 theaters for a paltry $1,065 per-screen average, while Submarine Deluxe's documentary I Call Him Morgan earned $14,154
from one theater and FIP's romantic comedy Phillauri earned $265,000 from 74 theaters for a $3,581 per-screen average. No box office data was given for Monterey Media Inc's drama The Leveling and FIP's romantic comedy Phillauri. There isn't any indication yet if any of these limited release films will be expanding in the weeks and months ahead.
Looking ahead to next weekend, Paramount will bring its live-action adaptation of the beloved manga series Ghost in the Shell to theaters, which will go up against DreamWorks Animation's The Boss Baby. Also opening in limited release will be The Blackcoat's Daughter, Carrie Pilby, Here Alone, Despite the Falling Snow, Here Alone, Live Cargo and God Knows Where I Am. Take a look at the box office estimates for the weekend of March 24, and check back on Tuesday for the next wave of predictions.