2020 Box Office: ‘Star Wars’ Maintains Top Position

The year 2020 may still be new, but at the box office, it started right where it left off in 2019: with “Star War: Rise of Skywalker” maintaining its top position.

Another Milestone Surpassed by Disney

The Walt Disney Co. opened 2020 by surpassing a milestone. According to the estimates indicated by the studio on Sunday, “Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker” has made up to $33.7 million in its third weekend in the United States and Canada. The movie is closing in rapidly on $1 billion worldwide and is presently at $918.8 million.

Although pundits state that “Rise of the Skywalker” is highly unlikely to match the proceeds of previous entries of the trilogy, there is no doubt that the movie hit the coveted $1 billion mark, the seventh one for Disney.

“Frozen 2” Hits $1.33 Billion Worldwide

Another blockbuster from Disney, “Frozen 2,” is one of the six movies and has reached $1.33 billion last Sunday. It is presently the highest-grossing movie that was directed by a woman in universal ticket sales. Jennifer Lee is a co-director of both “Frozen” movies and has successfully beaten her own record, given the fact that the first “Frozen” movie brought in a humongous $1.28 billion.

The second installment of the film “Frozen 2” is also presently the highest-grossing animated movie, that is if you don’t bring 2019’s “Lion King” – which made up to $1.66 billion – into consideration.

Disney does not categorize the remake of the blockbuster as an animation but as a live-action film, even though it was heavy with CGIs.

Other Blockbusters Doing Great in the Box Office

Other movies that have made Disney proud include “Jumanji: The Next Level” which has added up to $26.5 million in its fourth week. The domestic total of this Dwayne Johnson-led movie is $236 million while its worldwide gross is over $600 million.

Next comes “Little Women” – directed by Greta Gerwig – which has gone on to become a smash hit. The film, a Louisa May Alcott adaptation, has remained the top-oriented option throughout the ever-busy holiday season. The megahit brought in a whopping $13.6 million in its second weekend and has gone on to gross up to $80 million worldwide within two weeks.

“Little Women” was made with nothing more than $40 million.

“The Grudge” is a horror reboot of a 2004 remake which was produced by Sam Raimi. It opened with a disappointing $11.3 million, which is considered a fair total since it was made with $10 million. Of course, the horror movie received a lot of disdainful reactions from audiences and critics.

“The Grudge” scores 18 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and even went on to garner an F CinemaScore from moviegoers, a score that is rarely seen.

“Knives Out“, a movie from Rian Johnson has done well compared to some to the other films in this week’s Top 10. It has grossed $9 million within six weekends while its global run stands at $247.5 million.

And of course, the war film “1917” from Sam Mendes, former director of two James Bond movies, is getting set to take the nation by storm. The movie is a success, judging from the packed theaters, the second week in a row. It has taken in $590,000 at just 11 theaters, which is highly impressive for a per-theater average of about $53,000.

Movies Making Waves

Other films still making waves in the theaters, both locally and internationally – and in no particular order – include:

• Uncut Gems
• Spies in Disguise
• Cats
• Bombshell