Friday Box Office: Hardly ‘Fantastic 4’ Struggles to Lead Pack as Summer Swoons

It also means that Paramount’s “Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation” has a real shot at a second weekend at #1. It placed second yesterday with $8.2 million and a likely slightly less than 50% fall projected for the three days. Though not one of the biggest hits of the summer, its strength in what is turning out to be a weak August is a rare piece of good news at the moment. After last week’s box office shortfall, it appears this one could be even steeper. The Top Ten total came to under $38 million yesterday, compared to $60 million for the same Friday in 2014 (which featured the opening of “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” and the second stanza of “Guardians of the Galaxy.”)

Three other wide openings appealing to distinct audiences had a limited impact, with only one promising. “The Gift,” a thriller and the directorial debut of actor Joel Edgerton as well as the first release from brand-new STX Entertainment, placed third with $4.1 million in only 1,648 theaters. This inexpensive film, with the marketing more expensive than its production cost, garnered strong reviews. It looks likely to be positioned to expand and end up as a multi-week performer.

“Ricki and the Flash,” with Oscar winners Jonathan Demme, Diablo Cody and especially Meryl Streep as draws, managed only an anemic sixth place/$2.25 million. It also started with fewer than normal theaters (1,603), but needs to show some spark tonight (when its core older audience might be more likely to show up) to position it anywhere close to success.

The other opener, Aardman Animation’s “Shaun the Sheep Movie” (Lionsgate), which got great reviews when it opened midweek, only managed to place 11th yesterday with $1.2 million. Matinees might propel it up a notch for the three days.

Holdovers took over the other slots, with “Vacation” (Warner Bros.) in fourth with $2.655 million, “Ant-Man” (Buena Vista) in fifth and “Minions” (Universal) seventh like “Ricki and the Flash” were at $2.2 million or slightly above. “Trainwreck” (Universal) took eighth with $1.9 million, the quickly fading “Pixels” (Sony) ninth with $1.6 million, and “Southpaw” (Weinstein) for now at least in tenth with $1,338,000.