Valentine’s Day weekend was one of record-breaking surprises for the second year in a row. Just one year after Fifty Shades of Grey opened to very big numbers and claimed the title of biggest February opening of all time, that record was broken once more — this time by Deadpool. With very strong reviews and an all-consuming marketing campaign, the latest superhero movie did huge business that far surpassed even the most optimistic expectations. This must be an enormous relief to Ryan Reynolds — after one weekend, Deadpool has already grossed more than Green Lantern did in its entire run.
In second place, Kung Fu Panda 3 also did spectacular business, doing almost exactly the same business as it did last weekend, which doesn’t happen.
The week’s two other new releases did decent numbers as well. How to Be Single opened at #3, which should be considered a modest success for a rom-com featuring four leads with unproven bankability. At #4, Zoolander 2 saw about the same opening weekend as its predecessor, which is not an embarrassment, but is still likely a disappointment for everyone involved — especially considering the cult status of the first film. Perhaps waiting 15 years to release a sequel was just too much time.
The Revenant, at #5, continued its exceptional run, boasting weekend results virtually identical to last week’s, despite playing in 752 fewer theatres. With last week’s DGA prize, this weekend’s BAFTA wins, and the extraordinary box office, it’s looking more and more like this film may be unstoppable in the Best Picture race. (But, still, don’t underestimate The Big Short.)
At #6, Hail, Caesar! slipped four spots, which is disappointing. Star Wars: The Force Awakens tumbled four spots as well, but no one would ever call that disappointing by this point. The Choice, meanwhile, surprised with a very small decline, coming in at #8. At #9 and 10, respectively, Ride Along 2 and The Boy stayed fairly strong. This was likely the final weekend for both in the Top 10, but they both turned a profit despite awful reviews (except The Boy is actually good — stay tuned for my review), so no one is complaining.
| TW | LW | Title | Gross (est.) | Cumulative (est.) | Weeks in Release |
| 1 | N | Deadpool | $135,050,000 | $135,050,000 | 1 |
| 2 | 1 | Kung Fu Panda 3 | $19,650,000 | $93,912,387 | 3 |
| 3 | N | How to Be Single | $18,750,000 | $18,750,000 | 1 |
| 4 | N | Zoolander 2 | $15,650,000 | $15,650,000 | 1 |
| 5 | 4 | The Revenant | $6,900,000 | $159,164,599 | 8 |
| 6 | 2 | Hail, Caesar! | $6,590,000 | $21,354,970 | 2 |
| 7 | 3 | Star Wars: The Force Awakens | $6,194,000 | $914,838,964 | 9 |
| 8 | 5 | The Choice | $5,250,000 | $13,259,551 | 2 |
| 9 | 8 | Ride Along 2 | $4,130,000 | $82,661,235 | 5 |
| 10 | 9 | The Boy | $2,913,000 | $30,778,587 | 4 |
Source: Box Office Mojo
What did you see this weekend?
