Jumanji: The Next Level Pulls in Huge $19.4 Million Opening Day

Jumanji: The Next Level is making a big splash at the box office. The sequel to Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle brought in $19.4 million in its first day at the box office. That puts it on pace for a $52.4 million opening weekend. That surpasses Welcome to the Jungle‘s opening weekend haul of $35 million.

In Jumanji: The Next Level, Spencer heads back to the world of Jumanji and Martha, Fridge and Bethany must follow in order to bring him home. They soon discover that the game is broken and is fighting against them, changing everything that they thought they’d learn about the world and its rules.

Jake Kasdan directs the film. Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas, Alex Wolff, Morgan Turner, Ser’Darius Blain, and Madison Iseman reprise their roles from the first film. The sequel adds Awkwafina, Danny Glover, and Danny DeVito to the cast.

The film is received mixed reviews, skewing more favorable than not. ComicBook.com’s Brandon Davis found the film to be a worthy successor, writing in his review, “Jumanji: The Next Level is a movie the whole family will enjoy. It’s an exciting, hilarious adventure and accomplishes everything it sets out to, never taking itself too seriously, and giving audiences an ab workout in how often they’ll be laughing.”

What are you seeing at theaters this weekend? Let us know in the comments, and keep reading to see this weekend’s top ten.

1. Jumnaji: The Next Level

Opening Weekend
Friday: $19.4 million
Weekend: $52.4

When Spencer goes back into the fantastical world of Jumanji, pals Martha, Fridge and Bethany re-enter the game to bring him home. But the game is now broken — and fighting back. Everything the friends know about Jumanji is about to change, as they soon discover there’s more obstacles and more danger to overcome.
 
Jumanji: The Next Level is directed by Jake Kasdan from a screenplay written by Kasdan, Jeff Pinkner and Scott Rosenberg. The sequel stars Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas, Alex Wolff, Morgan Turner, Ser’Darius Blain, Madison Iseman, Awkwafina, Danny Glover, and Danny DeVito.

2. Frozen 2

Week Four
Friday: $4.4 million
Weekend: $19.2 million
Total: $366.6 million

Elsa the Snow Queen and her sister Anna embark on an adventure far away from the kingdom of Arendelle. They are joined by friends, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven.
 
Frozen 2 is directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee. The film features the voices of Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff, Josh Gad, Ciarán Hinds, Sterling K. Brown, Evan Rachel Wood, Alfred Molina, Martha Plimpton, Jason Ritter, Rachel Matthews, and Jeremy Sisto.

3. Knives Out

Week Three
Friday: $2.6 million
Weekend: $9.1 million
Total: $78.8 million

A detective and a trooper travel to a lush estate to interview the quirky relatives of a patriarch who died during his 85th birthday celebration.

Knives Out is written, produced, and directed by Rian Johnson. The film stars Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, Lakeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford, Jaeden Martell, and Christopher Plummer.

4. Richard Jewell

Opening Weekend
Friday: $1.5 million
Weekend: $4.9 million

During the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, security guard Richard Jewell discovers a suspicious backpack under a bench in Centennial Park. With little time to spare, he helps to evacuate the area until the incendiary device inside the bag explodes. Hailed as a hero who saved lives, Jewell’s own life starts to unravel when the FBI names him the prime suspect in the bombing.

Richard Jewell is directed by Clint Eastwood from a screenplay by Billy Ray. It is inspired by the 1997 Vanity Fair article “American Nightmare: The Ballad of Richard Jewell” by Marie Brenner and the book The Suspect by Ken Alexander and Kevin Salwen. The film stars Paul Walter Hauser, Sam Rockwell, Kathy Bates, Jon Hamm, and Olivia Wilde.
 

5. Black Christmas

Opening Weekend
Friday: $1.8 million
Weekend: $4.5 million

Hawthorne College is quieting down for the holidays. One by one, sorority girls on campus are being killed by a stalker. But the killer is about to discover that this generation’s women aren’t willing to become hapless victims as they fight back.

Black Christmas is directed by Sophia Takal, and written by Takal and April Wolfe, and is a remake of the A. Roy Moore’s 1974 Canadian horror film of the same name. The film stars Imogen Poots, Aleyse Shannon, Lily Donoghue, Brittany O’Grady, Caleb Eberhardt, and Cary Elwes.

6. Ford v Ferrari

Week Five
Friday: $1.1 million
Weekend: $4.1 million
Total: $98.2 million

American automotive designer Carroll Shelby and fearless British race car driver Ken Miles battle corporate interference, the laws of physics and their own personal demons to build a revolutionary vehicle for the Ford Motor Co. Together, they plan to compete against the race cars of Enzo Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France in 1966.
 
Ford v Ferrari is directed by James Mangold and written by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, and Jason Keller.The film stars Matt Damon, Christian Bale, Jon Bernthal, Caitriona Balfe, Tracy Letts, Josh Lucas, Noah Jupe, Remo Girone, and Ray McKinnon.

7. Queen & Slim

Week Three
Friday: $1 million
Weekend: $3.5 million
Total: $33.1 million

Slim and Queen’s first date takes an unexpected turn when a policeman pulls them over for a minor traffic violation. When the situation escalates, Slim takes the officer’s gun and shoots him in self-defence. Now labelled cop killers in the media, Slim and Queen feel that they have no choice but to go on the run and evade the law. When a video of the incident goes viral, the unwitting outlaws soon become a symbol of trauma, terror, grief and pain for people all across the country.

Queen & Slim is directed by Melina Matsoukas from a screenplay written by Lena Waith. The film stars Daniel Kaluuya, Jodie Turner-Smith, Chloë Sevigny, Flea, Bokeem Woodbine, and Indya Moore. 

8. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Week Four
Friday: $952,000
Weekend: $3.2 million
Total: $49.1 million

A journalist’s life is enriched by friendship when he takes on an assignment profiling Fred Rogers. Based on the real-life friendship between journalist Tom Junod and television star Fred Rogers.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is directed by Marielle Heller and written by Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster. The film is inspired by the 1998 article “Can You Say … Hero?” by Tom Junod, which was published in Esquire. The film stars Tom Hanks, Matthew Rhys, Susan Kelechi Watson, and Chris Cooper

9. Dark Waters

Week Four
Friday: $560,000
Weekend: $1.8 million
Total: $8.6 million

A tenacious attorney uncovers a dark secret that connects a growing number of unexplained deaths to one of the world’s largest corporations. While trying to expose the truth, he soon finds himself risking his future, his family and his own life.

Dark Waters is directed by Todd Haynes from a screenplay written by Mario Correa and Matthew Michael Carnahan. The film is based on The New York Times Magazine article “The Lawyer Who Became DuPont’s Worst Nightmare” by Nathaniel Rich, which was published in 2016. It stars Mark Ruffalo, Anne Hathaway, Tim Robbins, Victor Garber, Mare Winningham, William Jackson Harper, and Bill Pullman.

10.. 21 Bridges

Week Three
Friday: $340,000
Weekend: $1.2 million
Total: $23.8 million

After uncovering a massive conspiracy, an embattled NYPD detective joins a citywide manhunt for two young cop killers. As the night unfolds, he soon becomes unsure of who to pursue — and who’s in pursuit of him. When the search intensifies, authorities decide to take extreme measures by closing all of Manhattan’s 21 bridges to prevent the suspects from escaping.

21 Bridges is directed by Brian Kirk and stars Chadwick Boseman, Stephan James, Taylor Kitsch, Sienna Miller, Keith David, and J. K. Simmons