1. Straight Outta Compton (review here)- $56.1M
Watching the early reaction, both good and bad, for N.W.A. biopic Straight Outta Compton has been interesting, to say the least. The same people who would turn out for any other music biopic look at 'Compton' with the side-eye, as if it's somehow a novelty just because the genre is hip-hop and not rock 'n roll or country music. The decided lack of press at the screening I intended told me a lot. It told me that this was a film that would be bolstered by fans who loved the group's music, and the incredible $56.1M debut only confirms that. But the truth is that these numbers are superior to the majority of similar biopics, and within a couple of weeks it should be within reach of Walk the Line's $119M domestic box office. 'Compton' has been in the works for a lot of years but the wait seems to have been worth it, and the buzz is that Universal Pictures is planning a big Oscars campaign, which again would put it on equal footing to Walk the Line and Ray, which received similar pushes.
2. Mission: Impossible-Rogue Nation- $17M/$138.1M
3. The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (review here)- $13.5M
Perhaps there is such a thing as spy movie overload? Between Melissa McCarthy's Spy and Kingsman: The Secret Service, there have already been a lot of these movies with more on the way. That made the going tough for Guy Ritchie's The Man from UNCLE, an adaptation of the cult favorite '60s TV series. The film opened at a lackluster $13.5M, even with the jawline of Superman himself Henry Cavill fronting most of the promos. This is perhaps the greatest knock on him as it shows he still isn't quite ready to be seen as a leading man, which is a shame because this is his best performance yet. The film is actually very good, but one can't help but wonder how things would have turned out if Steven Soderbergh had stuck around to direct with the A-list cast he originally hoped to assemble. Fortunately, the film didn't cost Warner Bros. a fortune to produce, and given its international flair it may be a hit overseas.
4. Fantastic Four- $8M/$41.9M
With reports that Miles Teller and Josh Trank nearly came to blows on the set of the disastrous Fantastic Four, these box office numbers could cause some squabbles in Fox's accounting department. The troubled superhero film dropped a massive 68% in its second week, earning only $8M. Not even Reed Richards can reach for good news out of that. Still, the studio is moving ahead on a sequel that will likely see a complete behind-the-camera overhaul while the cast remains intact.
5. The Gift- $6.5M/$23.5M
6. Ant-Man- $5.5M/$157.5M
7. Vacation- $5.3M/$46.8M
8. Minions- $5.1M/$312.9M
9. Ricki and the Flash- $4.5M/$14.6M
Those numbers don't look too good for the Meryl Streep rock drama, but considering Ricki and the Flash only cost $18M it could be worse.
10. Trainwreck- $3.8M/$97.9M
