by 
Updated on December 10, 2021
“Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation” is the fifth(!) film in the franchise with zero to do at this point with the classic 60s/70s TV show. Not that moviegoers at this point know or care about the TV show, of course, or care that it’s a part five; it has Tom Cruise in it, who’s still a box office draw. The film topped the box office this weekend with a $56 million opening. As expected, it’s a big success overseas, giving the film a global total of $121 million.
Trailing well behind in second place is “Vacation,” another well-past-part-three sequel, this one to the “National Lampoon’s Vacation” film series. Unlike “Rogue Nation,” this one didn’t fare as well, only pulling in $14.9 million. To date, it’s earned $21.2 million.
“Ant-Man” dropped to third place, earning $12.6 million (-49.3% from last weekend). Its totals to date stand at $132.1 million domestic and $291.6 million worldwide. By next weekend it should surpass “The Incredible Hulk” and no longer be the lowest-domestic-grossing Marvel Cinematic Universe film.
In fourth place is “Minions,” which earned $12.2 million (-46.8%). Its totals stand at $287.4 million domestic and $854.7 million worldwide. Did I mention “Minions””s budget was only $74 million?
Dropping to fifth place is “Pixels,” which earned $10.4 million (-56.7%). Its totals stand at $45.6 million domestic and $102.1 million worldwide. Did I mention “Pixels””s budget was $88 million? Which, unlike “Minions,” “Pixels” is unlikely to make back its budget domestically?
In ninth place is “Inside Out,” which earned $4.5 million (-39.1%). So far, “Inside Out” has earned $329.6 million domestic and $602.3 million worldwide. It’s now the third highest-grossing domestic Pixar film (not adjusted for inflation), behind “Toy Story 3” and “Finding Nemo”…and it should surpass “Nemo” in another week or two. Not bad for a film with an unusual premise and isn’t a sequel.
In tenth place is “Jurassic World,” which earned $3.8 million (-47.1%). The featherless dinosaur-filled film has now earned $631.5 million domestic and $1.56 billion worldwide. It seems unlikely at this point to earn another $27 million and surpass the domestic #2 film of all time, “Titanic.”
Dropping out of the top 10 is “Terminator: Genisys.” The film’s terminated with a domestic gross of $87.7 million (not even cracking $100 million) and a global gross of $317.7 million. Since it did quite well overseas, I imagine that’ll surely ensure yet another killer-robot sequel.
Opening next weekend is a very crowded slate of films, including: dramedy “Ricki and the Flash,” horror film “The Gift,” animated film “Shaun the Sheep Movie,” and the summer’s last major superhero film, “The Fantastic Four.” While “Shaun the Sheep Movie” did quite well overseas (it’s opening much later in North America than elsewhere) and has near-universally positive reviews, the “Fantastic Four” isn’t offering reviewers any early viewings. That’s the usual sign of a film being awful, which is disappointing given the previous “Fantastic Four” films have also been lousy. Some claim the “Fantastic Four” characters and premise themselves aren’t any good, but I don’t believe that. If the Thing can survive “meeting” Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble, he could surely thrive in much better hands… such as, well, the hands of Marvel’s studios.
