“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” ended up at $175 million per initial estimates, exactly where advance tracking suggested it would land — about 20% down from the similar pre-Christmas opening weekend two years ago for “The Last Jedi.”But in its own way, “Cats” will leave a greater impact.
It opened at #4 with $6.5 million.
With bad reviews that threaten to become more celebrated than the film itself, it’s headed to uncharted territory.
(By comparison: “Bombshell” earned about $5.1 million in fewer than half the screens.)The total for all films this weekend is around $245 million, making it the third biggest of the year and about $70 million more than the same weekend last year, which opened with “Aquaman.” Even so, it suggests that the full-year shortfall will be over $400,000, around 4%.“Lords of the Rings: The Return of the King” and “Avengers: Endgame” showed that trilogy-ending entries in top franchises can top earlier ones.
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