Movies

'Hitman's Bodyguard' Presides Over Miserable Labor Day Box Office

The long Labor Day weekend didn't do the box office any favors.

'Hitman's Bodyguard' Presides Over Miserable Labor Day Box Office
Lionsgate / "The Hitman's Bodyguard"
Article by Matt Picht
SMS
September 4, 2017

Last weekend's box office was a historic flop. And if you were hoping the long Labor Day weekend would turn things around, I have some bad news.

Over the four-day weekend, the North American box office is projected to take in about $95 million. That's the lowest Labor Day weekend intake in almost two decades.

But we can't blame the movies: Most of this week's top earners performed pretty well. Starting with No. 1.

Hanging on to its top spot is "The Hitman's Bodyguard," which improved slightly from its second week to its third to take home about $10.5 million over the traditional three-day weekend. That's projected to swell to over $13 million during Labor Day.

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The action-comedy has now grossed an estimated $58 million domestically, almost double its production budget. So, Marvel execs who are looking for the next big crossover, pay attention: The Deadpool/Nick Fury formula works.

On to No. 2, which is another holdover from last week. "Annabelle: Creation" stayed in second place and dropped just 2 percent from last week to finish at around $7.5 million over three days. Labor Day is expected to bring that up to a respectable $9.3 million for the weekend.

Rounding out the top three is "Wind River," a dramatic murder-mystery on its second week of release to a wide audience. The film is estimated to have picked up more than $6 million during the three-day weekend, and is expected to finish Labor Day with $7.9 million — about 73 percent better than it did last week.

Studios seem to be keeping their powder dry until after summer, when big blockbusters like "Justice League" and "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" are scheduled to drop. Until then, you've still got the creepy doll from "Annabelle" to keep you company.

Correction: A previous version of this story said there were no wide-release films over Labor Day weekend. "Tulip Fever" had a wide release.