The final installment in the Hunger Games movie franchise did battle with a pair of highly anticipated newcomers but still came out on top of the Thanksgiving weekend box office.
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 grossed $51 million to lead the domestic box office for the second straight weekend, bringing the fall blockbuster’s total U.S. ticket sales just shy of $200 million after two weeks in theaters, according to Box Office Mojo. The Jennifer Lawrence-starring Lionsgate (LGF) film outpaced two new releases to win the weekend title, as the Disney (DIS) and Pixar animated entry The Good Dinosaur finished second with $39 million in its box office debut while Rocky spinoff Creed grossed $30 million.
The Good Dinosaur is the second entry this year from Pixar, which normally releases just one film a year (but delayed Dinosaur‘s release from last year). The computer-animated film is unlikely to challenge Pixar’s release from earlier in the year, Inside Out, which grossed more than $350 million domestically.
Warner Bros.’ (TWX) Creed posted a strong weekend debut after the boxing movie received enthusiastic reviews from critics, some of whom envision a potential Oscar campaign for star Michael B. Jordan. Analysts are predicting Creed could top $100 million in total domestic ticket sales, though the movie still has a long way to go to knock out its predecessors. The original Rocky‘s 1976 box office haul comes out to nearly $460 million when adjusted for inflation, while the next three movies in that series made more $280 million in inflation-adjusted box office grosses.
And speaking of living up to franchise predecessors, the final Hunger Games film is still unlikely to pass the three previous installments in the series in terms of box office intake. Mockingjay – Part 2 is off to a strong two-week start, having grossed $440 million worldwide, but the film has still made less than every one of its predecessors in its opening and second weekends. 2013’s The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is the highest-grossing film in the series, with $865 million in global ticket sales, including $424 million domestically.
