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Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves opened to $38.5 million domestically, enough to bump off John Wick: Chapter 4 and top the domestic box office chart.
The big-budget movie — based on Hasbro’s fantasy tabletop game — came in ahead of expectations but will still need strong legs in order to launch a new franchise for Paramount and eOne after costing $150 million to make before marketing.
Dungeons & Dragons certainly has that chance: it earned stellar reviews and an A- CinemaScore from audiences. But adapting games has always been tricky business. Last year, Sony’s Uncharted debuted to $44 million domestically on its way to ultimately being considered a success.
Heading into the weekend, Dungeons & Dragons was tracking to open to a muted $30 million. Whatever the ultimate outcome, it expands the overall D&D universe for Hasbro.
Directed by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, Dungeons & Dragons is based on Hasbro’s influential role-playing game and features a star-packed cast led by Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page, Justice Smith, Sophia Lillis, Chloe Coleman, Daisy Head and Hugh Grant. The film reunites Game Night helmers Goldstein and Daley, who directed from a script they wrote with Michael Gilio.
The film also launches in more than 50 markets overseas, including the U.K., where eOne is distributing.
Lionsgate’s John Wick 4, which debuted to a rousing $73.8 million last weekend, fell to No. 2 in its sophomore outing with an estimated $29 million.
Paramount’s Scream VI and MGM’s Creed III followed, while faith-based new offering His Only Son, from Angel Studio, rounded out the top five with a $5 million opening from 1,920 theaters.
The weekend’s other new nationwide offering was Focus Features’ 2023 Sundance Film Festival entry A Thousand and One, which earned $1.7 million to $2 million from 926 locations.
More to come.
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