“Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” Can’t Topple “Super Mario Bros.” at Box Office

Super Mario Bros. Movie Dominates Box Office for Fourth Weekend

Are You There Box Office? It’s-a me, “Mario.”

The Super Mario Bros. Movie is still dominating the competition on domestic charts, fending off theatrical newcomers “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret,” “Sisu” and “Big George Foreman.”

The animated adventure is putting up yet another impressive hold, projecting a slim 37% drop from its previous outing for a hearty $37.5 million weekend gross. Already the highest-grossing release of 2023 so far, the film will almost certainly cross the $1 billion mark at the global box office this weekend. It’ll be the fifth title to notch that achievement since the onset of the global COVID pandemic, following in the footsteps of “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Jurassic World Dominion” and “Avatar: The Way of Water.”

“Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” Fares Well Among New Releases

The adaptation of Judy Blume’s best-selling 1970 novel is faring the best among new releases. Opening in 3,343 locations, the coming-of-age film earned $2.25 million on Friday, a figure that includes roughly $600,000 in Thursday previews. That may be enough for the Lionsgate release to project a third place finish for the weekend, but it’s ultimately an underwhelming result for a crowdpleaser based on a literary mainstay that carries a $30 million production budget.

That’s not to say support isn’t there for “Margaret.” The film has earned glowing reviews, landing a 98% approval rating from top critics on aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences are also a big thumbs-up, as research firm Cinema Score drew an “A” grade after surveying the first round of ticket buyers.

Lionsgate will look to make the most of that word-of-mouth, as “Margaret” continues to play through the upcoming Mother’s Day weekend. Beyond theatrical, the distributor can hope that the coming-of-age tale finds a shelf life as enduring as its source material’s.

Other Releases

• “Evil Dead Rise” looks to take silver after grossing $3.6 million on Friday, down 65% from its opening day last week.
• “John Wick: Chapter 4” continues to show staying power, looking to stick at fourth place on domestic charts.
• Disney is re-releasing “Return of the Jedi” this weekend to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the “Star Wars” trilogy capper.
• The Indian epic “Ponniyin Selvan: Part Two” looks to land in the top 10 on domestic charts, projecting a haul around $3 million to $4 million.
• “Sisu,” a quirky Finnish action film being opened by Lionsgate, drew $1.4 million on Friday from 1,006 locations.
• The newly released George Foreman biopic, fully titled “Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World,” will likely open outside of the top 10.

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