Big summer tentpoles continue to struggle at the domestic box office, where a horror pic took down Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
Insidious: The Red Door opened to an estimated $32.7 million to win the July 7-9 weekend, beating out Indy 5, which fell to No. 2 in its sophomore outing with an estimated $26.5 million.
The Red Door overperformed despite weak reviews, scoring the second-best opening of the series behind 2013’s Insidious: Chapter 2 ($40.3 million), not adjusted for inflation.
Heading into the weekend, prerelease tracking had suggested that the fifth and final Insidious installment, helmed by series star Patrick Wilson in his feature directorial debut, would earn $25 million or more. Screen Gems partnered with Stage 6 Films and Blumhouse on the horror pic, which reteams the original cast, including Wilson, Rose Byrne, Ty Simpkins and Andrew Astor.
Dial of Destiny, from Lucasfilm and Disney, tumbled more than 55 percent as it limped past the $100 million mark domestically to finish Sunday with $248 million in worldwide ticket sales.
The sleeper July Fourth hit Sound of Freedom, from Angel Studios, placed third in North America with $17 million-plus. The conservative-leaning film, which was crowd-funded, is doing big business in America’s heartland and in the South. The pic, which opened to big numbers on July Fourth after nabbing an A+ CinemaScore from audiences, finished Sunday with a domestic tally just shy of $40 million.
Pixar and Disney’s Elemental held at No. 4, followed by Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse at No. 5.
Joy Ride, from Lionsgate, placed No. 6 with a disappointing opening of $5.9 million. The pic, which had hoped for $7 million to $9 million, marks the second of several raunchy comedies opening at the summer box office as Hollywood tries to revive the genre. From the producers of Neighbors and the co-screenwriter of Crazy Rich Asians, Joy Ride stars Ashley Park, Sherry Cola, Stephanie Hsu and Sabrina Wu as four unlikely friends who embark on a once-in-a-lifetime international adventure.
Other weekend highlights: Elemental passed up DC and Warner Bros.’ The Flash in terms of domestic ticket sales with a North American cume north of $109 million.
More to come.
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