John Krasinski’s ‘IF’ hits a box office nerve with $35 million debut

John KrasinskiThe imaginary friends film “IF” took the top spot at the box office this weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Its North American debut, worth $35 million, was also a bit below some projections.

Is this a disappointment? A worrying sign of box office times? Or is the final story of “IF” not yet written? It’s not just your imagination: In these hectic first weeks of the 2024 summer box office season, where nothing has been a runaway success and each new film has more and more pressure to succeed, “IF » struck a chord.

Featuring Ryan Reynolds, Cailey Fleming and an army of A-list voices, including Steve CarellMatt Damon, Emily Blunt, Louis Gossett Jr., Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Maya Rudolph, “IF” was the brainchild of Krasinski, who wrote, directed and co-stars.

Paramount released the film, which reportedly cost $110 million to produce, in 4,041 locations across North America. Internationally, it grossed approximately $20 million in 56 markets, representing a world premiere of $55 million.

“Families came out in force and loved the movie,” said Chris Aronson, Paramount’s head of domestic distribution.

There are also several somewhat conflicting accounts surrounding his performance. With its PG rating, “IF” was the first major family film to hit theaters in weeks. And unlike a superhero or horror movie, family photos are often a marathon, not a sprint. Last June, Pixar’s “Elemental” was considered dead on arrival when it opened with $29.5 million domestically. But it continued to win all summer and ultimately grossed nearly $500 million worldwide.

“IF” received mediocre reviews (it currently sits at 49% “rotten” on Rotten Tomatoes), but, as with “Elemental,” audiences gave it a solid A CinemaScore this weekend. The studio considers it a successful debut and is optimistic about its longevity as summer truly begins for school-aged children.

“I think it bodes well for filmmaking in general as we enter the summer movie season,” Aronson said. “The kids will be out of school starting next week and I couldn’t think of a better film on the market than this one: it’s new, it’s fresh, it’s original and it’s is such a heartwarming film.

“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” continues to be a bright spot. In just 10 days, it surpassed $100 million domestically and $237 million globally. It came in second in its second weekend with $26 million (down 55%).

But there also hasn’t been a major cinematic moment comparable to last year’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” “Barbie” or “Oppenheimer” in quite some time. Last year this weekend, “Fast X” opened to over $60 million.

“It’s a very unusual summer. It’s off to an unusual start without a Marvel movie,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “The box office is in a holding trend, down 20% from last year.”

“IF” wasn’t the only new movie coming out this weekend, either. Lionsgate’s horror film, “The Strangers – Chapter 1,” outperformed with a $12 million debut from 2,856 locations. The innovative marketing campaign staged viral moments by bringing “outsiders” to major events, from the Trump trial to Coachella.

The Amy Winehouse biopic “Back to Black” opened in North America to an estimated $2.9 million from 2,010 screens.

The IMAX documentary “The Blue Angels” also grossed $1.3 million this weekend on 227 screens. It will be streaming on premium widescreen screens until May 22 before heading to Prime Video on May 23.

Summer, which begins for Hollywood on the first weekend in May, is only just beginning and could accelerate next weekend with the arrival of “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” and ” The Garfield Movie.

Dergarabedian noted that Memorial Day weekend is a time when moviegoers can catch up on movies they missed and heard about. For a film like “IF,” which picked up this weekend thanks to word of mouth, that could bode well. Still, there’s no sugarcoating the reality that 2024’s box office won’t build on 2023.

“On almost every level, this is a non-traditional summer in movie scheduling and box office trajectory,” Dergarbedian said. “But collectively, these films should have a strong memorial weekend.”

Estimated ticket sales Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final national figures will be released on Monday.

1. “SI”, $35 million.

2. “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” $26 million.

3. “The Strangers – Chapter 1”, $12 million.

4. “The Fall Guy,” $8.5 million.

5. “Challengers,” $2.9 million.

6. “Back to Black,” $2.9 million.

7. “Tarot”, 2 million.

8. “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire,” $1.7 million.

9. “The Blue Angels,” $1.3 million.

10. “An Unsung Hero,” $1.1 million.