Movie

The horror thriller directed by and starring John Krasinski scores the second-best opening of the year after 'Black Panther'.

• Apr 9, 2018

AceShowbiz - "A Quiet Place" made a not-so-quiet debut at North American box office. The high-concept horror movie, which marks a directorial debut for John Krasinski who also stars alongside his wife Emily Blunt, came out unchallenged with an estimated $50 million on its first weekend, kicking "Ready Player One" from the first place.

The dark thriller, which is nearly dialog free, exceeded industry expectations of $25 million. It marks the second-best opening of the year after "Black Panther" and is also the biggest Paramount opening since "Star Trek Beyond" earned $59 million in summer 2016. The studio has been struggling recently, with its expected tentpoles like "Sherlock Gnomes", "Suburbicon" and "Baywatch" bombed.

Receiving glowing reviews from critics and a B-plus CinemaScore, "A Quiet Place" is poised to add about $21 million from international market this weekend. That will bring the movie's total worldwide gross to $71 million so far, more than four times its production cost which is estimated at $17 million, not including marketing.

"It's about the story," said Kyle Davies, Paramount's president of domestic distribution, adding that horror movies are fun to watch in theaters. "That communal experience can't be replicated at home." "A Quiet Place" follows the surprise horror hit "It", which opened to $123 million in September and went on to gross $327 million.

Last week's champion "Ready Player One" is now sitting on the second place with approximately $25.1 million, dropping 40% from its opening cume. The latest creation of acclaimed filmmaker Steven Spielberg now has collected a total of $96.9 million domestically.

Another new release this weekend, "Blockers", debuted at No. 3 with an estimated $21.4 million. "Black Panther" remains steady, collecting approximately $8.4 million, or dropping only 26.6% from last week to occupy the fourth place. "I Can Only Imagine" also falls one spot to No. 5 with an estimated $8.3 million.

Top Ten Movies at Weekend Box Office for April 06-08:

1. "A Quiet Place" - $50 million
2. "Ready Player One" - $25.1 million
3. "Blockers" - $21.4 million
4. "Black Panther" - $8.4 million
5. "I Can Only Imagine" - $8.3 million
6. "Acrimony" - $8.1 million
7. "Chappaquiddick" - $6.2 million
8. "Sherlock Gnomes" - $5.6 million
9. "Pacific Rim Uprising" - $4.9 million
10. "Isle of Dogs" - $4.6 million