Lionsgate's "Now You See Me: Now You Don’t" Stuns Critics and Audiences Alike, Outpacing Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Reboot in Box Office Brawl
The highly anticipated third installment of the magician heist franchise has proven to be a true showstopper, leaving its competition - Paramount's rebooted classic "The Running Man" - in the dust. According to studio estimates, Lionsgate's film took home a whopping $21.3 million at the North American box office this weekend, while Paramount's take was a slightly paltry $17 million.
Despite being a long time coming, with the sequel nearly 10 years in the making, "Now You See Me: Now You Don’t" has managed to pull off an impressive worldwide opening of approximately $75.5 million, including ticket sales from 64 international territories. The film's impressive box office haul can be attributed to Lionsgate's effective marketing and publicity strategies, which have helped the franchise stay relevant.
"We really helped us get into a position where we now can play all the way through the holiday corridor," said Kevin Grayson, the president of worldwide distribution for Lionsgate's motion picture group. "Honestly, I didn’t see us being number one for the weekend about 10 days ago."
The film, directed by Ruben Fleischer and starring the original Four Horsemen - including Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher, and Dave Franco - alongside three new younger magicians, Jesse Eisenberg, Ariana Greenblatt, and Justice Smith, has been met with a mixed response from critics. However, audiences have been more positive, with 63% saying they would definitely recommend the film on Rotten Tomatoes.
Interestingly, women made up a larger percentage of "Now You See Me" fans (54%) compared to "The Running Man" (37%), indicating that the franchise is still appealing to female audiences. The B+ CinemaScore from both films suggests that while opinions are divided, the more popular choice among viewers remains the magician heist series.
While it's clear that Lionsgate has won this round, it's worth noting that Paramount's "The Running Man" - a reimagining of Stephen King's 1982 classic - may not be out of the woods just yet. Despite its lower box office haul, the film still earned a respectable $28.2 million worldwide against an estimated budget of $110 million.
In other news from the box office, "Keeper," a third feature from "Longlegs" filmmaker Oz Perkins, underperformed with only $2.5 million and a dismal D+ CinemaScore. Meanwhile, "Predator: Badlands" took third place with $13 million in its second weekend, followed by "Regretting You" and "Black Phone 2."
The real question on everyone's mind is when the highly anticipated musical "Wicked: For Good" will take over theaters next week, potentially boosting box office numbers for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. With predictions pointing towards a record-breaking five-day frame, it seems like things are finally starting to turn around in the film industry after a dismal October.
The highly anticipated third installment of the magician heist franchise has proven to be a true showstopper, leaving its competition - Paramount's rebooted classic "The Running Man" - in the dust. According to studio estimates, Lionsgate's film took home a whopping $21.3 million at the North American box office this weekend, while Paramount's take was a slightly paltry $17 million.
Despite being a long time coming, with the sequel nearly 10 years in the making, "Now You See Me: Now You Don’t" has managed to pull off an impressive worldwide opening of approximately $75.5 million, including ticket sales from 64 international territories. The film's impressive box office haul can be attributed to Lionsgate's effective marketing and publicity strategies, which have helped the franchise stay relevant.
"We really helped us get into a position where we now can play all the way through the holiday corridor," said Kevin Grayson, the president of worldwide distribution for Lionsgate's motion picture group. "Honestly, I didn’t see us being number one for the weekend about 10 days ago."
The film, directed by Ruben Fleischer and starring the original Four Horsemen - including Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher, and Dave Franco - alongside three new younger magicians, Jesse Eisenberg, Ariana Greenblatt, and Justice Smith, has been met with a mixed response from critics. However, audiences have been more positive, with 63% saying they would definitely recommend the film on Rotten Tomatoes.
Interestingly, women made up a larger percentage of "Now You See Me" fans (54%) compared to "The Running Man" (37%), indicating that the franchise is still appealing to female audiences. The B+ CinemaScore from both films suggests that while opinions are divided, the more popular choice among viewers remains the magician heist series.
While it's clear that Lionsgate has won this round, it's worth noting that Paramount's "The Running Man" - a reimagining of Stephen King's 1982 classic - may not be out of the woods just yet. Despite its lower box office haul, the film still earned a respectable $28.2 million worldwide against an estimated budget of $110 million.
In other news from the box office, "Keeper," a third feature from "Longlegs" filmmaker Oz Perkins, underperformed with only $2.5 million and a dismal D+ CinemaScore. Meanwhile, "Predator: Badlands" took third place with $13 million in its second weekend, followed by "Regretting You" and "Black Phone 2."
The real question on everyone's mind is when the highly anticipated musical "Wicked: For Good" will take over theaters next week, potentially boosting box office numbers for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. With predictions pointing towards a record-breaking five-day frame, it seems like things are finally starting to turn around in the film industry after a dismal October.
Another big-budget movie bombing at the box office... Lionsgate's "Now You See Me: Now You Don’t" is only making $21.3 million this weekend, and that's still way lower than expected considering how long it took to make. And don't even get me started on Paramount's "The Running Man", which barely made $17 million 
Lionsgate's marketing team must've been on point cuz that $75.5 million worldwide opener is straight fire 
I mean, who needs a 10-year wait when the film comes out and still racks up those doughs? 
Meanwhile, "The Running Man" reboot just cant seem to keep up with its competition 
guess thats why Arnold's gonna have to suck it up and watch his magicians get all the glory 
female fans are loving this franchise too btw 54% of women are into it? that's pretty lit 
And can we talk about how cool it is that women made up a bigger percentage of fans this time around? 54% of the magic happens when the ladies are involved 
I mean, who needs Arnold when you've got a magician's heist on your hands? Lionsgate really pulled off some tricks (pun intended) with their marketing and publicity, and it paid off big time. The fact that women are making up the majority of fans for this flick is also super interesting – maybe they're just more into magic than action? 
Anyway, I'm glad to see some actual competition in the box office, but let's be real, "Wicked: For Good" is gonna be a game-changer. Can't wait to see what numbers come out next week! 
And yeah, they definitely outdid Arnold's reboot by a mile. I guess you could say they made sure to bring the magic (pun intended) to the box office.
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! I've been waiting for this movie for ages and it's finally living up to my expectations. The magic tricks are insane and Woody Harrelson is still bringing his A-game 
and yeah paramours "The Running Man" is getting smoked by lionsgate so no hard feelings 
, that one was always gonna get lost in the dust. i love how the original four horsemen are back 
can't wait to see how it'll affect the box office numbers 
. I'm not convinced that Lionsgate's strategy isn't just reusing old tricks instead of actually innovating. And as for Arnold Schwarzenegger's reboot, yeah, it got thrashed... but hey, at least he tried 
. And yaaas, women are making up a bigger chunk of fans for this franchise - love it! 
The fact that audiences are more positive than critics is also a win in my book 
. Fingers crossed! 
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lionsgate did an amazing job wit their marketing, they kept me hooked from start 2 finish 
and its awesome 2 c women makin up a bigger portion of fans than men 
gotta keep an eye out 4 that wicked musical tho, cant wait 2 see it on screen 
but they've got some fresh faces too 
. But audiences love it! 63% on Rotten Tomatoes is def a good number 
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. But hey, at least it brought in some cash 
def a flop 
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. fingers crossed for a record-breakin holiday frame 