The Last Voyage of the Demeter is a new period horror picture set aboard a merchant ship that is tanking in its home debut, despite the continuous popularity of Barbie and Oppenheimer. Universal’s second attempt at a Dracula film this year after the action-comedy Renfield tanked in the spring is in trouble after collecting $2.62 million on its opening day from 2,715 theaters, including $750,000 in Thursday previews. The Last Voyage of the Demeter is expected to launch in fifth place and make $6.5 million over its three-day opening weekend.
The Last Voyage of the Demeter failed to make an impression at the Box office
Nothing says summer blockbuster season is winding down like an antiquated genre film that ends abruptly in its premiere. Even with a production budget of about $45 million, a modest sum for a period piece, The Last Voyage is unlikely to be a box office triumph. The aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes has given the film a 27% approval rating from top critics. Audiences dislike the film as well, with Cinema Score’s survey of early ticket buyers yielding a dismal B- grade.
Adapted from a chapter of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, The Last Voyage of the Demeter tells the narrative of a commercial ship and its crew that find themselves at the mercy of a vampire who has taken over the ship.
At the box office, it’s still a Barbie world, with rivals projecting the fantasy comedy adding $31.4 million from 4,178 locations in its fourth weekend of play, down only 41% from the previous week. Warner Bros. has yet to put out Friday’s numbers.
Barbie still continues to rule the Box office, making it the biggest hit of this year
Greta Gerwig’s Barbie exceeded $1 billion at the global box office last week, making Gerwig the first solo female filmmaker to have a billion-dollar film. The hot-pink comedy starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling crossed the $500 million mark domestically on Friday and is projected to become the highest-grossing Warner Bros. picture in North America, unadjusted for inflation. At $534 million, The Dark Knight now holds the record.
Meanwhile, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer took in $5.1 million from 3,761 screens on Friday, a 39% decrease from the previous weekend. The Universal biographical drama is expected to gross $17.2 million this weekend, a 41% decrease from its previous appearance, bringing domestic ticket sales to $262 million.
In third place, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem grossed $4 million from 3,950 venues on its second Friday, a 56% decrease from its debut. The animated film, produced by Nickelodeon Movies and Point Grey Productions, is expected to gross $14.6 million over the three-day weekend, for a domestic total of more than $71.6 million.
Meg 2: The Trench isn’t making a big splash at the box office, with rivals projecting only $11.8 million from 3,604 screens for its sequel. That would be a 60% reduction from its $30 million opening weekend, which was already a considerable drop from the $45 million domestic premiere of the 2018 original.
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