Christian Bale, Matt Damon Top Theaters in ‘Ford v Ferrari’

(Bloomberg) -- “Ford v Ferrari,” the racing drama starring Christian Bale and Matt Damon, opened as the top film in North America, blowing by a disappointing revival of the “Charlie’s Angels” movie series.

“Ford v Ferrari” generated sales of $31.5 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters, researcher Comscore Inc. said Monday. Analysts had expected $22 million to $32 million. Walt Disney Co., which inherited the movie from its 20th Century Fox acquisition, had predicted a debut in the high teens.

Key Insights

• The story, about a race car built in the 1960s to help the Ford Motor Co. beat Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France, won over most critics tracked by Rotten Tomatoes.

• Director James Mangold -- known for “Walk the Line”-- also worked with Bale in “3:10 to Yuma.” The director’s R-rated “Logan” opened to over $85 million in 2017.
• Two other films opened in wide release. “Charlie’s Angels,” from Sony Corp., landed in third place with $8.35 million, a poor start for a $48 million production. It’s the third time since 2000 that “Charlie’s Angels,” which began as a 1970s TV show, has come to the big screen.
• The other new film was “The Good Liar” from Warner Bros., which landed in seventh place with $5.61 million. The caper film starring Helen Mirren and Ian McKellenwas made for just $10 million.
• The U.S. box office is still mired in a slump. Total sales for the weekend slumped 12% from the same weekend a year earlier, while 2019 sales to date are 6.2% behind 2018.

Get More

• See the weekend release schedule.
• See Box Office Pro’s long-range forecast.

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