Encanto retains the top spot in a static weekend box office—but with a special appearance from Jesus
The box office is mostly the same as last week, but Christmas With The Chosen makes a surprisingly strong showing
Aux News Encanto
The weekend box office numbers have been following a somewhat steady pattern over the last few months, with one new movie—generally a new release—making relatively good money while nothing else makes much money at all. As more and more people have gotten vaccinated and then boosted (or have settled into a lifetime of denying that COVID exists and that vaccines work, leaving them free to do whatever they want), the market has gotten a little livelier and more movies have been able to make relatively good money at once.
This week, though, is more reminiscent of the hesitant early days of us going back out into the world, which is to say that there has been virtually no movement on the charts from last week. Encanto won again, followed closely by Ghostbusters: Afterlife, followed less-closely by House Of Gucci. Encanto has fallen sharp enough after two weeks that it probably won’t cross $100 million domestically, but Ghostbusters just snuck by for a total of $102 million. As for House Of Gucci, Ridley Scott’s second film this year, it is… holding on to third place.
There is one disruptor mucking things up, though: A little reason-for-the-season named Jesus Christ. Maybe you’ve heard of him? Jesus himself isn’t actually on the charts, but the cast of Christian crowd-funded streaming show The Chosen is, courtesy of Fathom Events and Christmas With The Chosen: The Messengers, a movie with the cast of a show that is both completely obscure and enormously popular (like Yellowstone for people who are busy on Sundays) and some Christmas songs.
The movie made $4.1 million this weekend but $8.7 million since coming out on Wednesday, which apparently makes it the most successful thing Fathom Events has ever put on. It will be interesting to see if it sticks around longer than the average Fathom Event because of that, since it could theoretically make a lot more money as we get closer to Christmas.
Everything after that is mostly the same as last week, with Dune, Clifford, and King Richard all flip-flopping positions and making about the same amount of money. Finally, holding 10th place in its debut, is anime tie-in movie Sword Art Online: Progressive – Aria Of A Starless Night. (It’s based on a show that’s based on a book about a fictional video game that has since become a real video game, more or less.)
The full top 10 list, which comes courtesy of Box Office Mojo (go there for more detailed numbers), is below.
- Encanto
- Ghostbusters: Afterlife
- House Of Gucci
- Christmas With The Chosen: The Messengers
- Eternals
- Resident Evil: Welcome To Raccoon City
- Dune
- Clifford The Big Red Dog
- King Richard
- Sword Art Online: Progressive – Aria Of A Starless Night
16 Comments
Hey Sam, What are your thoughts on the future of this website now that you’ve all been given the ultimatum to move to L.A.?
Sam’s fine with it as long as he gets his daily ration of whiskey.
Umm. Yeah.
Amen.
Christmas with the Chosen showed up quite suddenly on the ticketing system this week with like 13 showings all spaced 15 or 30 minutes apart. I can only assume one or more of the local megachurches hired out as much of the theater as they could so that their whole flock could enjoy their warm reassuring cud together. It managed to knock Clifford completely out of the theater for the day, and reduced even Encanto and Ghostbusters to just a few showings.I doubt it will continue to collect toward Christmas though, unless everyone keeps going again and again every weekend like they did with Passion.
I’ve brought up before about how my area only gets the Fathom events that are Christianity-related and nothing else (I’d really like to go to the anime or Rifftrax ones, but I’d probably have to drive over an hour to do so, and I can’t be arsed). They must be doing well, even though it seems like every church I drive past is incredibly small and devoted to a different denomination.
I read the Gawker article and am concerned, but I’m not sure if the AV Club staff is allowed to talk about it publicly. I really hope the worst doesn’t come to pass, but if it does, I’m hoping the writers and commentariat will find somewhere else to go.
Does anyone know why I can’t see comments on any of the other sites around here? Was there some “block all greys” thing that happened? Or do they no longer allow comments anywhere but here? So strange.
I’m not sure what happened, but when I click on the Start The Discussion button, the comments on other sites show up. I don’t know why it’s not happening here, although this is the only site I’m ungreyed on, so maybe that’s the difference.
Ah, thanks! That was the solution. Yeah, this is the only site I am ungreyed as well, so I guess that explains it.
In my headcanon Christmas with the Chosen is a Wheel of Time spinoff.
Or Darksouls DLC.
Would watch.
I’ve always found it amusing how much conservative Christians like to role play as Jews (while often not liking actual Jews) — giving their kids Old Testament names, taking the book of Genesis (the Jewish creation myth) more literally than most Jews do, and oh, yes, calling themselves “The Chosen”.
Don’t forget the persecution. Christians love to say they are being persecuted.
He suffered, so should you.
Has Christian crowd-funding ever led to anything good?