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With Summer 2022 dwindling to its end, the box office buzz of hot summer blockbusters also seems to be fizzing out. Three new films were released this past Friday, August 26th, including Sony’s supernatural horror film ‘The Invitation,’ George Miller’s fantasy/romance film ‘Three Thousand Years of Longing‘ starring Idris Elba, and lastly, the dramatic thriller bank heist film ‘Breaking‘ starring John Boyega. Of those three films, The Invitation so far leads the lackluster box office weekend. The total Box Office projections for this weekend are to gross around $55 million (or lower), making it the worst box office weekend of the summer and one of the worst of the year.
The 2022 American supernatural period film The Invitation is currently ahead of the other two new movies released this weekend. The Invitation is leading with around $6 million to $7 million from 3,114 locations in its opening. MGM’s Three Thousand Years of Longing is looking to place right above the top five, while Breaking is projected to end somewhere outside the top ten this weekend. None of these films are slated to make over $10 million from this soft Summer 2022 box office weekend.
‘The Invitation’ Leaves Critics Not Hungry For Another Bite
Funny enough, with vampire drama The Invitation leading this box office weekend, it happens to be the lowest rated on Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ of all three opening films. Starting with the lowest grossing of the three, Breaking currently has a 79% on the Tomatometer with a similar 78% Audience Score. The critic consensus for Breaking describes it as struggling to convey its messages effectively, but John Boyega’s electrifying performance well serves its noble intentions.
Next up, the box office bomb Three Thousand Years of Longing scored a 70% on the Tomatometer with a 69% Audience Score and critic consensus reading, “Although its story isn’t as impressive as its visual marvels, it’s hard not to admire Three Thousand Years of Longing‘s sheer ambition.”
Lastly, our foreseeable crowned leader of this drowning Summer Box Office weekend, The Invitation, scored a mere 29% on the Tomatometer with a higher Audience Score of 53%. The critic consensus reads, “Despite a very likable lead and a refreshingly light touch, The Invitation is ultimately too predictable to thrill as either a romance or a horror story.”
Top Ten Films for This Box Office Weekend
Sony’s The Invitation comes in first on its opening weekend, with Sony’s Bullet Train coming in 2nd on its fourth week in theaters. The massive summer blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick is still alive and breathing in theaters in its 14th week, ranking 3rd place in the top ten films for this weekend and grossing a total of $691.3 million!!!
Coming in 4th place is Crunchyroll’s Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero in its sophomore weekend, grossing $31 million. Universal’s Beast starring Idris Elba, marks its spot at 5th place, also in its sophomore outing. In 6th place is Warner Bros. animated film DC League of Super-Pets, which is in its fifth week in theaters.
Next up is one of the previously talked about films opening this weekend, Three Thousand Years of Longing, taking 7th place. At the same time, the infamously animated and meme culture-boosted film Minions: The Rise of Gru drops to 8th place in its ninth week in theaters.
Reaching our final films, Disney’s Marvel summer blockbuster Thor: Love and Thunder stands in 9th place during its eighth week in theaters. Last but not least, Jordan Peele’s epic sci-fi horror Nope takes 10th place during its sixth week out.
What do you think about this weekend being the worst Summer Box Office weekend of 2022? Are you planning to see The Invitation or any of the films that opened this weekend? What movies are you looking forward to coming out in the next month? Let us know what you think in the comments below and be sure to share your opinion on The Nerd Stash Facebook page and @TheNerdStash on Twitter. We love to hear from you!