‘Uncharted’ Finds Box Office Treasure With $51 Million Presidents Day Opening

The Matt Reeves-directed blockbuster is set to be the biggest theatrical hit for Warner Bros. since the DC film featuring Batman’s nemesis “Joker” was in theaters in fall 2019. And for movie theaters, it’s a much-needed boost in business after theaters were closed in 2020 and spent much of the past year trying to get back on their feet as the box office recovered in fits and starts.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefSouth Korean cinema audiences turned out to see “The Batman” but little else over the weekend. That activity put “The Batman” firmly on top of the weekend box office chart, but it left overall business at deeply depressed levels.“The Batman” earned $2.01 million between Friday and Sunday according to data from the Kobis data service operated by the Koran Film Council (Kofic).

first place at the box office, raking in $128.5 million on its opening weekend — more than any other movie this year.The three-hour superhero reboot, staring Robert Pattinson as Gotham’s brooding caped crusader, is the second pandemic-era flick to earn more than $100 million in a single weekend, according to Variety.The Warner Bros. film, which also features Zoë Kravitz as an exceptionally foxy Catwoman, beat out the Mark Wahlberg treasure-hunt flick “Uncharted” for the top spot.“It’s fun to see the public really embrace the movie,” Jeff Goldstein, president of domestic distribution at Warner Bros., told the entertainment news outlet.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterRobert Pattinson’s “The Batman” towered over international box office charts, collecting $120 million from 74 overseas markets.After debuting to $128.5 million in North America, the Warner Bros. comic book adventure has generated $248.5 million globally to date.

The Matt Reeves-directed blockbuster is set to be the biggest theatrical hit for Warner Bros. since the DC film featuring Batman’s nemesis, “Joker” was in theaters in fall 2019; and for movie theaters it’s a much-needed boost in business after theaters were closed in 2020 and spent much of the past year trying to get back on their feet as the box office recovered in fits and starts.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterHoly ticket sales, Batman!Robert Pattinson’s pitch-black superhero adventure “The Batman” collected a mighty $128.5 million in its box office debut, marking the best opening weekend of 2022 by a landslide. But what is more impressive: it’s only the second pandemic-era movie to cross the $100 million mark in a single weekend, a feat first achieved by “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” which launched last December to a historic $260 million.Thanks to positive reviews, strong reception from ticket buyers and high levels of intrigue to see Pattinson’s moody take on the Caped Crusader, “The Batman” is shaping up to be a commercial winner for Warner Bros.

caped-crusader reboot grossed $57 million on its opening night Friday, far ahead of every other flick.“Uncharted” followed with $3 million, or $92.2 million cumulatively.And feel-good pet movie “Dog” placed third with $1.6 million, or $35.6 million cumulatively.

Not only does that put “The Batman” alongside “Spider-Man: No Way Home” as the second film since the pandemic began to open to over $100 million, that also makes it the first Warner Bros. release in over four years to top that mark. The last title from the Burbank studio to do so was “It” was a $123 million opening back in September 2017.

J. Kim Murphy The 2022 box office has its first juggernaut. After years of promotion and more than few delays due to COVID-19, “The Batman” finally hit movie theaters this weekend.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterSony’s video game adaptation “Uncharted,” starring Tom Holland as street-smart treasure hunter Nathan Drake, had another solid showing at the international box office.Over the weekend, the PG-13 video game adaptation collected $35 million from 64 overseas territories, pushing its international tally to $143 million. With $83 million in North American ticket sales, “Uncharted” has generated $226.4 million globally so far. That haul is impressive because “Uncharted” has yet to open in China (March 14), which currently stands as the world’s biggest theatrical market.“Uncharted” continues to pull in crowds in the United Kingdom, Holland’s birthplace.

Tom Holland continues to be a big box office draw.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterIt’s (still) good to be Tom Holland.The 25-year-old actor has been all-but-singlehandedly propelling ticket sales at North American movie theaters, leading two films in the top three spots on domestic box office charts. Over the weekend, his action-adventure “Uncharted” repeated No.

John Mulaney kicked off his fifth time hosting Saturday Night Live by addressing his drug problem and talking about his newborn son.

SATURDAY AM: Refresh for more analysis and chart  Before a big tentpole comes into the marketplace, there’s typically a lull at the box office, but it’s an even bigger lull when the major studios don’t have any new wide entries. Everyone is waiting for Warner Bros. The Batman and many sources tell me it’s bound easily for a $100M+ opening, in fact $115M+, and the advance ticket sales are there to prove that. This despite the 3-hour running time, and from what I hear (I haven’t seen it yet) is a more noir, detective story by Matt Reeves than all the action set pieces in a Christopher Nolan movie. iSpot shows Warner Bros. having spent already $28M+ in U.S. TV spots (that’s even a big number from that data agency’s POV) across such shows as the Winter Olympics, NFL, Good Morning America, NBA games and Big Brother: Celebrity Edition. Note, Warners’ hasn’t weighed in on these industry projections at the time of writing, but note, they’ll safely lowball. That said, no one sees it below $100M.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefThe U.S.-made action adventure film “Uncharted” took a comfortable first place a the South Korean box office on its first weekend of release.“Uncharted” took $2.12 million between Friday and Sunday, grabbing 53% of the total Korean market, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic). Over five days since its Wednesday opening, the film earned $3.00 million.

“Uncharted” is already exceeding industry expectations.

With that result, this $120 million blockbuster adaptation of the Playstation video game series has passed $100 million in global theatrical grosses having added an estimated $55.4 million internationally this weekend to bring its global total to $139 million through Monday. While critics dismissed the film with a 40% Rotten Tomatoes score, a largely young and male audience has embraced it with an 89% audience score and a B+ on Rotten Tomatoes.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterSony’s long-in-the-works video game adaptation “Uncharted” collected $44.1 million between Friday and Sunday, enough to lead domestic box office charts and solidify Tom Holland’s star power.The big-budget action adventure has been positioned as a key test of Holland’s bankability outside of his blockbuster success as Spider-Man. “Uncharted” has received mixed reviews, at best, so it’s safe to assume the 25-year-old British actor had a healthy hand in selling tickets. It also helps that “Uncharted” is rated PG-13 and based on one of the most popular video games.Directed by “Ruben Fleischer, who previously led Tom Hardy’s comic book tentpole “Venom” to box office glory, “Uncharted” is expected to earn $52 million from 4,275 North American theaters through the President’s Day holiday on Monday.