The opening weekend of “The Upside,” the Kevin Hart-Bryan Cranston remake of the worldwide French hit “Intouchables,” ended the three-week reign of “Aquaman.” It made just short of $20 million — besting estimates — and comes after a few weeks of controversy for Hart that suggested the long-delayed film might take a hit.The odd-couple pairing of a wealthy and paraplegic New Yorker and the ex-con hired to care for him is a curious inverse of “Green Book.”Initially a Weinstein film, it premiered to mixed critical response at Toronto 2017, with plans for an early 2018 opening upended by the company’s demise.
Its pickup by Stx, a totally capable distributor with access to top theaters, still suggested to some a limit to its, shall we say, upside.
The company has had several successes, but only one opening over $20 million.
And Hart’s promo tours for the film got more attention for
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