Tom Brady’s film just beat a formidable opponent at the box office

Retired quarterback Tom Brady defeated armies of rookies at the weekend box office.

His comedy “80 for Brady,” starring Jane Fonda, Sally Field, Rita Moreno and Lily Tomlin as octogenarians who plot to cheer on their hero Brady at the 2017 Super Bowl, beat “Avatar: The Way of Water” after that the blockbuster has spent 7 consecutive weeks at the top.

But Brady, who appeared in the film and produced it, was still overtaken by M. Night Shyamalan’s thriller “Knock at the Cabin,” which finished No. 1 with $14.2 million in sales. tickets.

“80 for Brady” opened with around $12.5 million. Shortly before announcing (again) his retirement from football, Brady attended the premiere of the film.

Paramount Pictures used a unique strategy in releasing “80 for Brady”. While many films have sought to capitalize on higher ticket prices through large-format or 3D screenings or peak pricing, which movies like “The Batman” have tried, Paramount has gone the other way. meaning on “80 for Brady”. The studio has partnered with exhibitors, including the biggest chains, to play “80 for Brady” at matinee prices to help appeal to its vastly older audience. (Half of ticket buyers were over 55.)

It seemed to work. At a time when comedies have struggled hard in theaters, “80 for Brady” (with a $28 million production budget) had one of the best openings for a live-action comedy in years. The reduced prices must continue for the remainder of the film’s run.

“Avatar: The Way of Water” slipped to No. 3 with $10.8 million domestically in its eighth weekend. The film’s No. 1 sequence was 2009’s “Avatar” series. In the past four decades, only these two Cameron films and his “Titanic” (1997) have had such sustained box office reigns.

“The Way of Water” continues to do particularly well overseas, where its $27.9 million over the weekend brought its overall total to $2.17 billion worldwide. This ranks it as the fourth-grossest of all time; Cameron – with two films “Avatar” and “Titanic” – now counts for three of the top four.

“BTS: Yet to Come in Cinemas” took in $5.1 million to land in fifth place. The BTS concert footage is taken from their October 2022 performance in Busan, South Korea – a farewell performance before the band went on a two-year hiatus. It opened in 1,111 locations.

Estimated Friday-Sunday ticket sales at US and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final national figures will be released on Monday.

1. “Knock the Booth,” $14.2 million.

2. “80 for Brady,” $12.5 million.

3. “Avatar: The Way of the Water,” $10.8 million.

4. “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish”, $8 million.

5. “BTS: Yet to come in theaters,” $5.1 million.

6. “A Man Called Otto,” $4.2 million.

7. “M3gan”, $3.8 million.

8. “Missing”, $3.7 million.

9. “The Chosen Season 3 Finale,” $3.6 million.

10. “Pathaan,” $2.8 million.