INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
LOS ANGELES: Sam Mendes& &1917& marched to box office victory, earning a solid $36.5 million from 3,434 theaters in its first weekend of
wide release.Universal and DreamWorks& World War I drama also defeated Disney &Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker,& the final chapter in the
sequel trilogy that has ruled box office charts since debuting in late December.The tentpole slid to second place, generating another $15
million for a domestic haul of $478 million.1917& is undoubtedly capitalizing on awards season attention, a promising sign on the eve of
In a surprise Golden Globes victory last Sunday, the film beat odds-on favorites &The Irishman& and &Marriage Story& to take home the statue
for best motion picture - drama.Mendes also nabbed the best director prize
Amblin Partners and New Republic backed the $90 million film, which has enjoyed critical raves.To movie theater owners and studio
executives, &1917& is emblematic of the kind of experience ticket buyers can only get on the big-screen.The slice-of-life war epic unspools
to look like one unbroken shot, resulting in an edge-of-your-seat journey that makes audiences feel like they, too, are in the
trenches.Moviegoers, most of whom were older males, appear enthusiastic about the film, awarding it with an A- CinemaScore.Another Oscar
hopeful, Warner Bros.& legal drama &Just Mercy,& also expanded nationwide this weekend, picking up $10 million from 2,375 venues.The film
scored a rare A+ CinemaScore from audiences, signaling word of mouth could be strong moving in coming weeks, especially if it sees any
Academy Award love come Monday morning.So far, the awards prospects of &Just Mercy& have been limited to a SAG nomination for Jamie Foxx for
his portrayal of a wrongfully convicted man on death row.Michael B
Jordan and Brie Larson also star in the drama, which cost $25 million.Just Mercy& is in a close race with fellow new release, Paramount
R-rated comedy &Like a Boss& for fourth place on box office charts.Some rival studios are projecting &Just Mercy& debuts to $9.8 million,
which would allow &Like a Boss& to pull ahead if those estimates hold.Tiffany Haddish and Rose Byrne star in &Like a Boss,& a film that been
more embraced by audiences than critics
It pulled in $10 million from 3,078 locations, a modest result but one that could point to profitability given its $29 million price tag
Miguel Arteta directed the film about two best friends struggling to run their own cosmetics company.Meanwhile, &Underwater,& a sci-fi
thriller starring Kirsten Stewart, tanked after debuting with $6.9 million from 2,791 screens.That a catastrophic result given its $50
million budget.Underwater& is the latest dud from Fox, which has saddled Disney with a series of disappointments since the companies merged
last spring.However, Disney is only distributing &Underwater,& limiting its exposure.Underwater& was produced by Chernin Entertainment and
financed by TSG.TheIndianSubcontinent has not verified the content of the source
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