Plus Disney/Pixar’s Turning Red Subject to Mixed Reactions
Welcome back to The Couch Potato Corner, where every week I go over the latest news in streaming services, as well as the traditional box office. This week I’ll be shining the box-office spotlight on The Batman and providing some insight into whether the film is on track to crossing the billion-dollar mark.
While consumer behavior is difficult to predict, by using Joker as a basis which The Batman continues to outperform, we can see a clear path developing. The movie brought in an additional $238.5 million domestically and $224.7 million overseas for a total of $463.2 million globally in its second weekend, with a solid 51% drop. Additionally, Mr. Wayne benefited from a complete lack of competition. The only possible nemesis to its success was supposed to be Disney/Pixar’s Turning Red, which opted into a streaming-exclusive release instead and opened to some polarizing reviews. Will The Batman zoom across the $1 billion mark, or will the Batmobile get a flat tire along the way?
Moving onto the couch, let’s look at what happened on Netflix this past week. Tyler Perry’s reign at the top was short lived, as The Weekend Away took the top spot in its debut week with over 44 million hours viewed this week. Providing a glimmer of hope to the Game of Thrones curse, Against the Ice debuted just behind it with 30 million hours, taking the number two spot. My personal shout out goes to Shrek 2 debuting in the Top 10 at number 5 usurping the original movie, which only debuted at number 7. That movie is living proof that sequels can be better than the original and that cover performances can be better than the original song.
When it came to the top performing series, it appears even the juggernaut Inventing Anna ran out of steam as Vikings Valhalla took its place with 113 million hours viewed. It seems to have some gas in the tank still, though, as it stood strong at number 2 with 77 million hours viewed. As a true crime fan, I’ve personally been dying (pun intended) to see Jason Blum’s Worst Roommate Ever. It seems that I’m not alone in that as it debuted at number 4, with 52 million hours viewed.
Next weekend at the box office looks like a repeat performance for The Batman, which will undoubtedly take home the number one spot once again. We have new horror film Umma, starring Sandra Oh, American crime drama, The Outfit, starring Dylan O’Brien, Alice starring Keke Palmer and Common, and slasher film X, starring Mia Goth. Are you excited to see those? You might be the only one.
If you’re looking to stay in, however, there are a few options coming out on streaming this week. First, all the Marvel Netflix shows will finally be moving to their new home on Disney+ this Wednesday. On Thursday, Netflix hopes to cash in on their own dog movie, with Rescued by Ruby starring Grant Gustin. Going into the weekend, we have a new family to meet in Cheaper by The Dozen (not to be confused with the original from 2003) debuting on Disney +. Other movies dropping that same day include Deep Water starring former lovebirds Ben Affleck and Ana de Armas, and Windfall starring Jason Segel and Lily Collins. If you’re interested in finding a new series instead, Hulu’s Life & Beth, starring Amy Schuemer and Michael Cera. Drops on Friday. Netflix also brings a bunch of options on Friday including social media hit show, Is It Cake, Young, Famous & African, and Big Mouth spin-off Human Resources. Finally, Apple TV has We Crashed, starring Jared Leto proving once again that he is a chameleon alongside Anne Hathaway.
That about wraps up this week’s edition of The Couch Potato Corner. Tune in next week to see how your favorites performed at the Box Office and in homes across the country.