A sci-fi fantasy and a Greek mythology face-off in a battle of the sexes at the weekend box office. Scarlett Johansson [SJOHA] toplines Lucy [LUCY] as a party girl who is turned into a killing machine by an experimental drug that increases her full brain capacity. Luc Besson [LBESS] directed the R-rated actioner which harkens back to his early films like Le Femme Nikita and The Professional, but with special effects. Moviegoers have been buzzing since Universal dropped the first trailer. The film looks to be the closest thing to a female superhero movie and Johansson just happened to be coming off playing Black Widow in Captain America: The Winter Solider. Lucy will appeal equally to both sexes. Fandango reports advanced ticket sales are ahead of Oblivion ($37.0 million) and Edge of Tomorrow ($28.8 million). Opening in 2172 theaters, Lucy aims to fire off $38 million.
Dwayne Johnson [TROCK] stars as the demi-god Hercules [HERCL]. The PG-13 rated fantasy epic looks to appeal to primarily young males who can’t get into Lucy. Paramount has stirred up little buzz with a lackluster marketing campaign even though reviews have been surprisingly positive for a genre film. Outside of an established franchise, Johnson may not draw beyond his usual fanbase. Hercules could topple $23 million from 3595 locations.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes [APES2] should net another $20 million in its third weekend as the sequel surpass the total of the first film. Meanwhile, The Purge: Anarchy [PURG2] may tumble more than 60% in itssecond weekend to $11.5 million.
Michael Douglas [MDOUG] and Diane Keaton [DKEAT] team-up for the PG-13 rated comedy And So It Goes [ASIGO]. The target senior demographic is likely to wait for the video. The unproven distributor Clarius is coming off the disastrous Legend of Oz. Playing in 1760 theater, And So It Goes may tally $4 million.
Open Road drops the PG-13 rated The Fluffy Movie [FLUFY] into 432 theaters. Gabriel Iglesias [GIGLE] performing his stand-up comedy could collect $3 million.
That’s the whisper from the virtual trading floor.
Tag(s): SJOHA, LUCY, LBESS, TROCK, HERCL, APES2, PURG2, MDOUG, DKEAT, ASIGO, FLUFY, GIGLE