On a quiet weekend in movie theaters, while much of Hollywood's attention was on the wildfires raging in Los Angeles, Lionsgate's Den of Thieves 2: Pantera debuted atop the box office with $15.5 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. About 10 theaters were closed in Los Angeles, the country's top box office market. A sequel to the Gerard Butler 2018 heist thriller, Den of Thieves 2 performed similarly to the original. The first installment, released by STX, opened with $15.2 million seven years ago. O'Shea Jackson Jr. co-stars in the sequel, which debuted in 3,008 North American theaters.
Audiences liked it well enough, giving the film a B+ CinemaScore. Reviews—58% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes—weren't particularly good. But it became Lionsgate's first No.1 opening since The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in November 2023. Also entering wide release was the Robbie Williams movie Better Man, one of the more audacious spins on the music biopic in recent years, in which the British popstar is portrayed by a CGI chimpanzee in Michael Gracey's film. The Paramount Pictures release didn't catch on much better than Williams' previous forays into the US. It tanked, with $1.1 million in ticket sales from 1,291 locations. Gracey's previous feature, 2017's The Greatest Showman, fared far better in theaters. Reviews, however, have been positive for Better Man.
Final domestic figures will be released Monday. Below are estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at US and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore.
- Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, $15.5 million.
- Mufasa: The Lion King, $13.2 million.
- Sonic the Hedgehog 3, $11 million.
- Nosferatu, $6.8 million.
- Moana 2, $6.5 million.
- A Complete Unknown, $5 million.
- Wicked, $5 million.
- Babygirl, $3.1 million.
- Game Changer, $1.9 million.
- The Last Showgirl, $1.5 million.
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