Hollywood just delivered a brutal weekend reminder: buzz is not box-office currency. While The Running Man sprinted into theaters with hype, memes, and early optimism, the finish line belonged to a different beast entirely — Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, which pulled off the ultimate magic trick: stealing audience attention, ticket sales, and bragging rights in one clean cinematic heist.
🎬 1. The Opening Weekend Face-Plant
Despite early forecasts hinting at a strong first-lap box-office sprint, The Running Man clocked in at $6.4M on opening friday, including previews, pushing it toward a weekend total of only $17M–$19M — a far cry from comfortable territory, especially for a film reportedly carrying a $110M production weight-vest.
🧪 2. Critical Fuel Ran Out Mid-Race
While initial reactions praised energy, tone, and Wright’s stylistic flair, full reviews shifted gears — leaving the movie parked at a 64% Rotten Tomatoes rating, along with a consensus implying:
✔ Slick? Yes.
✔ Stylish? Definitely.
✔ Wright’s best? Not quite.
💰 3. Magic Outsells Mayhem — The Real Winner
Meanwhile, Lionsgate’s Now You See Me: Now You Don’t made $8.4M across friday + previews from 3,403 locations, projecting a $21M–$24M three-day haul, proving yet again that:
clever spectacle > expensive spectacle
illusion > explosion
🦖 4. Predator: Badlands Still Roaring Quietly
Dropping to third, Predator: Badlands snagged $3.5M on its second friday and is expected to claw its way to $66M domestic, quietly flexing better-than-expected staying power compared to fresh releases.
👻 5. horror Stumbles Yet Again — Keeper Barely Appears
Keeper collected a painful $1M across 1,950 locations, pairing that with mixed-negative reviews and a D+ CinemaScore, cementing itself as this weekend’s “enter and immediately exit audience memory” title.
🎤 FINAL TAKE — HOLLYWOOD’S UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH
Stars, stunts, hype, scale, and budget don’t guarantee dominance anymore.
This weekend reinforces a new cinematic law: If the audience doesn’t feel it, they won’t fund it.
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