The Big Picture
- The Equalizer 3 fights its way to the top spot at the box office, earning $42 million in its debut and setting a Labor Day record for Sony.
- Oppenheimer is now the third highest-grossing film of 2023 and the second-biggest R-rated movie in global box office history.
- DC’s Blue Beetle falls short in comparison to Gran Turismo, but still manages to earn $9.2 million and outperform other DC films like The Flash and Shazam! Fury of the Gods.
Summer is drawing to a close and, following a wild season packed with “Barbenheimer,” Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and a return to the Spider-Verse, it’s The Equalizer 3 that takes the throne to open September with a Labor Day weekend debut that pulled in $42 million at the domestic box office. The Denzel Washington-led affair was joined at the top by Barbie who continues her global domination with another $13.1 million to her eye-watering total, while Oppenheimer has quietly become the third highest-grossing movie of 2023. Although Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer, a few more significant titles remain for the waning weeks of the season.
September is a massive month for franchises kicking off with The Nun II, a return to The Conjuring universe on September 8 which looks to recapture the magic of its Valak-led box office juggernaut predecessor. The scares keep coming with Kenneth Branagh‘s third and most supernatural Hercule Poirot film A Haunting in Venice on September 15 followed by the long-awaited Expend4bles on September 22, and finally, “Saw Patrol,” the unholy combination of Saw X and Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie on September 29. That last date is especially crowded with Gareth Edwards‘s timely sci-fi AI film The Creator releasing and the GameStop short squeeze dramedy Dumb Money expanding out before going wide on October 6.
‘The Equalizer 3’ Fights Its Way to the Top Spot
Unsurprisingly, Sony’s The Equalizer 3 closes out the trilogy on a high note by breaking necks en route to the top spot at the domestic box office with $42 million in its debut, topping $60 million globally. Robert McCall’s final outing sees the former assassin step up to defend his new friends in Southern Italy by dismantling the local mafia and racking up a massive body count in the process much to the delight of critics and audiences. Director Antoine Fuqua‘s latest made a little history too, setting a high watermark at Sony for Labor Day releases and placing in second all-time on the holiday behind Marvel’s Shang-Chi at $94.6 million.
The Staying Power of “Barbenheimer”
While Greta Gerwig‘s Barbie continued its reign in the second spot, the other half of “Barbenheimer” is still doing well for itself too. Christopher Nolan‘s biographical thriller Oppenheimer about the father of the atomic bomb rounded out the top five, adding another $7.5 million to climb past the $850 million mark, sneaking past Deadpool 2 to become the second biggest R-rated movie in global box office history. Only The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises stand between the Cillian Murphy-led feature and the title of the highest-grossing Nolan film. Nothing seems to slow the atomic blockbuster as it continues to draw in viewers eager to see the atomic blockbuster’s stunning practical effects on the biggest screen possible.
‘Blue Beetle’ Leaves ‘Gran Turismo’ in the Dust
As Gran Turismo took its foot off the gas, DC’s Blue Beetle managed to surge past the wish-fulfillment tale based on a true story. Director Ángel Manuel Soto‘s origin story of a hero chosen by a powerful alien artifact managed to pull in another $9.2 million through Labor Day, which would be an encouraging sign on paper. More moviegoers are continuing to go out and see Xolo Maridueña‘s Jaime Reyes than were The Flash or Shazam! Fury of the Gods at this point, but that’s hardly a high bar to clear. It only just crossed $100 million globally this weekend, leaving DC with another bomb on its hands.
All of these films are now playing in theaters. Stay tuned at Collider for future box office updates!
