I mentioned in my review of Terminator: Dark Fate that the sequel is appreciably not just a blatant first chapter of a bigger story it hopes to tell in the future. And it’s a good thing that it has that standalone nature because based on its weekend debut numbers, Dark Fate probably won’t be seeing any more follow-ups.
The Tim Miller-directed blockbuster landed in the top spot in the US but could only pull in a soft $29 million, falling short of expectations. Traditionally, Halloween weekend is a very low-earning period in the US, so it’s uncertain why Paramount chose to release it then. Perhaps they felt that with no other big releases, they would get an easy win. Alas, it didn’t work out that way. Of course, Dark Fate’s international numbers could still help the film turn a big enough profit… Could but didn’t.
The film earned a disappointing $72.9 million from the major international markets (only taking $28 million in China), and on its current trajectory will probably end its run with around $180 million worldwide. With a production budget upwards of $200 million and another $80-100 million spent on advertising costs, Dark Fate could end up losing Paramount around $100 million. Ouch. I think it’s safe to say that the Terminator franchise won’t be back.
As for the rest of the domestic chart, we have to first look back to last weekend where Joker narrowly beat Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. Except it didn’t. As we suspected might happen, when the actuals started coming through on Monday night, it turned out that Maleficent had earned a little bit more than initially estimated and had, in fact, knocked Joker to third place. It was a short-lived victory though as this weekend Joker easily reclaimed the first runner-up position as it earned $13.9 million to Maleficent’s $12.1 million.
Internationally though, things were reversed as Maleficent earned $40 million as opposed to Joker’s $37 million, however the latter is still the big winner. With a global tally of $934 million, Joker is on the cusp of joining the $1 billion club.
In fourth, we find the first of the other newcomers in historical drama Harriet which debuted with $12 million. With this being a biopic about Harriet Tubman, the American abolitionist and political activist, it probably won’t have much international appeal. With just a $17 million budget though, it’s still sure to turn a profit easily. The same can most certainly not be said for the remaining two newcomers on the charts though which make Terminator: Dark Fate’s opening look positively euphoric in comparison.
The Edward Norton-directed/starred neo-noir crime drama Motherless Brooklyn had to settle for ninth place as it earned a paltry $3.6 million. Its relatively cheap price tag of $26 million and a small release being its saving grace. There was nothing saving Arctic Dogs though. The star-studded animated film brought up the very rear of the top ten as it debuted with a pathetic $3.1 million. Not only did the film cost $50 million to make, but with it being released in over 2 800 cinemas in the US, it had one of the worst per-theatre-averages for a wide release ever.
Let’s see what the rest of the US box office chart looks like:
| No. | Movie Name | Weekend gross | Percentage change | US Domestic gross | Worldwide gross | Last Week's Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Terminator: Dark Fate | $29 million | NE | $29 million | $123.6 million | NE |
| 2 | Joker | $13.9 million | -27% | $299.6 million | $934 million | 2nd |
| 3 | Maleficent: Mistress of Evil | $12.1 million | -37% | $84.3 million | $383.2 million | 1st |
| 4 | Harriet | $12 million | NE | $12 million | $12 million | NE |
| 5 | The Addams Family | $8.4 million | -29% | $85.2 million | $129.2 million | 3rd |
| 6 | Zombieland 2: Double Tap | $7.3 million | -37% | $59.3 million | $87.1 million | 4th |
| 7 | Countdown | $5.8 million | -34% | $17.7 million | $21.4 million | 5th |
| 8 | Black and Blue | $4 million | -51% | $15.4 million | $15.5 million | 6th |
| 9 | Motherless Brooklyn | $3.6million | NE | $3.6 million | $3.6 million | NE |
| 10 | Arctic Dogs | $3.1 million | NE | $3.1 million | $3.1 million | NE |
NE = New Entry
Last Updated: November 4, 2019
Kapitan Balalaika
November 4, 2019 at 12:42
Didn’t think Joker would touch the Billion mark. Very impressive. A solid win for DC.
Son of Banana Jim
November 4, 2019 at 14:04
Me neither, but it’s certainly well deserved. I can’t wait to add this movie to my bluray collection.
G8crasha
November 4, 2019 at 13:03
You know, some franchises just need to be put to bed, or completely reworked, or spin-offs created. You had a good run Terminator, but its time to go to bed. The franchise owners should take a page out of the Transformers franchise. The main movies started to lose appeal, so they decided to create a spin-off movie, Bumblebee, which breathed some new life into the franchise.
Son of Banana Jim
November 4, 2019 at 14:04
They need to just stop. The problem with these terrible sequels is that they actually harm the first two movies; and those two movies are iconic now, but this current ones undermines terminator 2 in the most cynical manner. It literally baffles my mind…
Hammersteyn
November 4, 2019 at 14:41
I read some spoilers, what the **** were they thinking?
Son of Banana Jim
November 4, 2019 at 14:04
Terminator is probably the worst movie of the year. I don’t think the new Star wars movie will even come close to it, although I could be wrong. Jar Jar Abrams could surprise us, but for now… Terminator is the pile of crap to beat.
James Cameron, maybe you should just stick with underwater/ocean exploration and leave film making to those with a passion for it. Or if they have blackmail on you, use facial ticks in your interviews….
konfab
November 5, 2019 at 14:41
But they have strong womynz. How could this be a flop? Must be sexism.
Like Sonic the Hedgehog, some things need to be taken care of behind the shed with a shotgun.
konfab
November 5, 2019 at 14:41
But they have strong womynz. How could this be a flop? Must be sexism.
Like Sonic the Hedgehog, some things need to be taken care of behind the shed with a shotgun.