‘Happy Death Day 2U’ Finishes Fifth at Weekend Box Office
While many predicted a better showing for Happy Death Day 2U, the film ended up in fifth place at the weekend box office with roughly $10 million in ticket sales ($13.5 since it was released on Wednesday). This total is $16 million less than the original film made in its opening 3-day weekend frame back in 2017.
Every movie studio ended up being disappointed this weekend, as it was the worst three-day President’s Day weekend for ticket sales since 2004. Chief among the underachievers was Alita: Battle Angel, whose lofty expectations never materialized (in first place with $36.5 million since Thursday), falling victim to the same inflated tracking numbers that sank The Lego Movie 2 last week (which finished second at the box office with $21.2 million). While the turnout for all films this weekend was low, there may need to be less emphasis put on tracking and social media awareness for upcoming films, as both measures have proven to be wildly inaccurate in 2019 and have so far created unrealistic expectations for new releases this year.
