Weekend box office: The Equalizer beats out The Boxtrolls

Brad Sturdivant September 28th, 2014

Even though THE EQUALIZER wasn’t loved by critics, it doesn’t matter because it was easy to see from the previews that it was going to feature Denzel Washington as a tough guy. And just like with Liam Neeson, audiences love Denzel as a tough guy. In this case, to the tune of about $35 million at the weekend box office. That was more than enough to beat out the other big film of the weekend, the creepy animated film THE BOXTROLLS. But the question is; will $35 million be enough for a sequel? Probably so, this is Hollywood after all, where everyone is searching for a franchise. Meanwhile, THE MAZE RUNNER only lost about half of its audience and Marvel’s THE GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY is still holding in the top ten.

Next week sees the much anticipated release of David Fincher’s GONE GIRL. It doesn’t seem like the movie that’s going to find box office success, but it will be a key weekend for the film because if it bombs completely, it will probably ruin whatever Oscar chances it has. But if it does okay or does well, it could keep it in the race. Speaking of Oscar hopefuls, we also get THE GOOD LIE with Reese Witherspoon. This one doesn’t have much box office pressure on it, but it will be interesting to see how the critics react to Witherspoon’s performance. In the end, I think GONE GIRL will take the top spot, mainly because everyone wants to see if Ben Affleck killed his wife without actually having to read the book. Note: the numbers below will be updated as they become final.

1. The Equalizer $35.6m

2. The Maze Runner $16.6m

3. The Boxtrolls $16.5m

4. This is Where I Leave You $7m

5. Dolphin Tale 2 $5m

6. No Good Deed $4.6m

7. A Walk Among The Tombstones $4.4m

8. Guardians of the Galaxy $3.6m

9. Let’s Be Cops $1.4m

10. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles $1.4m

(Deadline)