"Doctor Strange 2" Revenue Drops But Still Tops America's Box Office

Doctor Strange/Photo: Antara

JAKARTA - Revenue for the superhero film "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" saw a sharp decline over the weekend compared to its debut week, but still dominates the North American box office, according to AFP on Monday, May 16.

The film has reportedly sold approx. 61 million US dollars (IDR 891 billion) over the weekend or the period from Friday, May 13 to Sunday, May 15, according to industry observers Exhibitor Relations on Sunday, May 15 local time.

Previously, the sequel, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, had opened last weekend with revenues of 187 million US dollars (IDR 2.7 trillion). The film has now earned US$292 million (IDR 4.2 trillion) in the US and US$396 million (IDR 5.7 trillion) in markets outside the US, bringing the global total to US$688 million (IDR 10 trillion).

According to Variety, sales “Doctor Strange 2”'s 67 percent drop in tickets marks a sharper drop compared to recently released Marvel films such as “Eternals” which dropped 61 percent in its second weekend, and “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” which fell 52 percent in the second weekend.

Revenue far behind “Doctor Strange 2”, the film “The Bad Guys” took second place at the box office for the Friday-Sunday period with 6.9 million US dollars (IDR 100.8 billion). This DreamWorks Animation film features Sam Rockwell, Awkwafina, and Anthony Ramos as voice actors.

The third position is occupied by "Sonic the Hedgehog 2" which is still holding for the second weekend in a row by adding 4.6 million US dollars (IDR 67 billion) at the weekend.

Another is the new release of Universal's "Firestarter", which is a remake version of the film of the same name by director Stephen King in 1984. The new film starring Zac Efron has pocketed US$3.8 million (IDR 55.5 billion), a figure which is said to be disappointing for the debut of a thriller film from a major studio.

Despite taking fourth place at the box office, "Firestarter" received poor ratings on the Rotten Tomatoes website. "Firestarter" contrasts the sci-fi film "Everything Everywhere All at Once" (ranked fifth at the box office) which received good reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. The film "Everything" starring Michelle Yeoh earned US$3.3 million (IDR 48 billion) in its eighth weekend after its release.