‘Bob Marley: One Love’ to Pass $100 Million at Global Box Office in 2nd Weekend

February 24, 2024 @ 8:09 AM

Paramount’s “Bob Marley: One Love” is holding well at the box office with an estimated $14 million second weekend, pushing the film to $71 million in domestic grosses and past $100 million worldwide after 10 days in release.

Despite lukewarm critics’ reviews, the biopic about the famous reggae musician won over audiences during Presidents’ Day weekend and is doing a respectable job at expanding interest beyond Marley’s fans. Theaters will hope for “One Love” to continue bringing out audiences in the coming weeks who are looking for something less intense and more heartwarming than Warner Bros./Legendary’s “Dune: Part Two,” which is expected to take No. 1 next week with a $70 million-plus launch.

Elsewhere in the top five, a new franchise anime film and faith-based offering are off to decent starts in their respective niche markets. Sony/Crunchyroll’s “Demon Slayer: To the Hashira Training,” made $5.5 million from 1,949 theaters on Friday and is headed for a $10.8 million launch. It’s a solid start for the anime film, half of the $21 million opening made by the last “Demon Slayer” film, “Mugen Train,” in 2021 but consistent with its 2023 followup “To the Swordsmith Village.”

In third is Lionsgate/Kingdom Story Company’s “Ordinary Angels,” which grossed $2.3 million from 3,020 theaters and is expected to meet pre-release studio projections with a $6 million opening. While many faith-based films win over their core audience while leaving critics unimpressed, the true-story inspirational drama starring Hilary Swank has gotten approval from both with Rotten Tomatoes scores of 81% critics and 99% audience to go with an A+ on CinemaScore.

The big misfire of the weekend is Focus Features’ “Drive Away Dolls,” which only grossed $1 million and is set to open to just $2.5 million from 2,280 theaters. Directed by Ethan Coen, the black comedy has received generally positive reviews with a 66% RT score but left audiences cold with a C on CinemaScore.

More to come…