Wonka tops January Box Office, Night Swim impresses, outpacing Aquaman 2

The dust has settled on Hollywood’s first popcorn feast of 2024, and January’s box office has taken a slower start. Timothée Chalamet’s whimsical Wonka waltzed across the box office, while Blumhouse is swimming towards a highly profitable margin. And in a twist worthy of Aquaman himself, the under-hyped sequel after enduring loads of side eyes, managed to swim its way toward financial redemption. Not a good start for Warner Bros as The Color Purple slides down to lower ranks.
For the third time in four weekends, Wonka, starring Timothée Chalamet, topped the box office. Studio estimates for the family-friendly Warner Bros. musical on Sunday stated that it brought its total domestic revenues to $164.7 million with $14.4 million in ticket sales over the weekend.
Also read: 2023 Creative Arts Emmy Awards full winners list: Netflix’ Wednesday, HBO’s The Last of Us, and more clinches big
Director Paul King brilliantly transports audiences into a whimsical world crafted entirely from the realm of dreams. The musical film narrates the tale of how Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka rose to prominence, featuring a cast that includes Hugh Grant, Matt Lucas, Sally Hawkins, and more. Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore in a statement to US News said that Wonka is following in the footsteps of films like, The Greatest Showman. “’Wonka’ is a perfect crowd pleaser released at the perfect time and it’s going to ride that wave into January, t’s an opportune time for it to be in the marketplace.”
In the movie, Wyatt Russell and Kerry Condon play a couple who have to cope with an evil, unearthly swimming pool. As the only new film this weekend, Night Swim made a remarkable $12 million opening weekend, much more than its $15 million budget. This success ensures a profitable outcome, paving the way for Night Swim 2: Swim Harder set to hit theaters next January.
Also read: Stranger Things Spinoffs list: From Animated to live-action, all the upcoming projects after Season 5
Universal’s head of domestic distribution Jim Orr said, “Not only did it perform really well at the box office, but it’s going to make us look at every swimming pool with a little more trepidation.”
Though not reaching the billion-dollar mark like its predecessor, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is making strong strides, nearing the break-even point and possibly surpassing $400 million. With a buzzworthy performance in China and anticipation for its release in Japan, the film is poised to become the most successful DC movie of the year.
Approximate ticket sales from Friday to Sunday at theaters in the United States and Canada, as reported by Comscore.