Tom Cruise in “Top Gun: Maverick”
Source: Paramount
“Top Gun: Maverick” continues to break barriers at the box office.
of great quality And the Skydance sequel to the 1986 hit “Top Gun” raised $900 million in global ticket sales on Monday and has its sights set on surpassing the coveted $1 billion mark at the box office.
Without too much standing in its way, box office analysts expect “Maverick” to achieve that milestone within a week. Blockbuster features won’t have much competition until July 8, when Disney’s Marvel Studios Releases “Thor: Love and Thunder.”
So far, sales of “Maverick” have been split between approximately $475 million in the US and Canada, and approximately $430 million from international markets.
“Reflecting the film’s universal appeal, the roughly 50/50 split of domestic versus international revenue is a rare feat for most modern blockbusters,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at comScore.
Since its late May debut, “Maverick” has maintained its brisk domestic box office, driving strong ticket sales during its fourth week in theaters. The film debuted with sales of $126.7 million, the highest opening weekend at the box office for any Tom Cruise film, and the actor’s first film to gross over $100 million during his debut.
In its second weekend, ticket sales dropped 29% to $90 million, according to data from comScore, demonstrating more staying power than most blockbuster features. Usually, sales of big budget movies see a drop between 50% to 70% from the launch week to the second week.
This strong performance continued: it brought in $52 million in its third weekend, a 42% drop from the second weekend, and $44 million during its fourth weekend, a 14% drop from the third.
Sean Robbins, Chief Analyst at BoxOffice.com, said, “‘Maverick’ has in a way only achieved the rarest of rare breed films in the cultural field.”
Robbins noted that “Maverick” was well-reviewed and action-packed, and also generated considerable word of mouth, which brought back viewers of the original film as well as younger film audiences.
“It’s the epitome of a great summer movie,” he said.
The film has consistently attracted audiences over the age of 35, a demographic that has been reluctant to return to theaters since the height of the pandemic. Young filmmakers typically drive the bulk of blockbuster ticket sales, but films that entice older customers to return will be an important part of the industry’s post-pandemic recovery.
“Kudos should be given to Paramount Pictures, who have been a perfect partner for Tom Cruise over the years, and were especially waiting for the right moment to open the film in theaters and due to the challenges streaming release has to offer. Didn’t treat it as a pandemic,” said comScore’s Dergarabedian. “‘Top Gun: Maverick’ is a textbook example of how you make billions of dollars right at the box office.”
