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It was a very weak start for the month of March.

With incredibly weak competition, Bong Joon-ho's Mickey 17 topped the box office, but it still proved to be the latest sci-fi flop at the box office. There were 3 other wide releases, all of which flopped as well. Needless to say, it was brutal.

The Top 10 earned a combined $49.2 million this weekend. That's an awful 62.4% drop from last year, when Kung Fu Panda 4 topped the box office. This weekend is also barely up from last week, when there was just one wide release.

Opening at #1, WB's Mickey 17 flopped with just $19 million in 3,807 theaters. These numbers are eerily similar to the box office failures of other sci-fi films like Jupiter Ascending ($18.3 million), Ad Astra ($19 million), and The Creator ($14 million). The only comfort is that it was Bong Joon-ho's biggest debut, but that's not saying much considering his prior films all opened in limited release. And it cost more than all his films ($118 million).

The failure of Mickey 17 isn't surprising. There's a risk in opening a new sci-fi film, citing the failure of the previously mentioned titles. Even though Mickey 17 is based on a book, it was treated as an original title anyway. So the film's disappointing numbers are another hit at the argument that audiences crave for new and original films.

Bong is popular with the cinephile audience; there was enormous interest in seeing what he would do after the colossal success of Parasite. But it's been 5 years since that film won Best Picture, and it appears that the public moved on. This film was originally set for March 2024, but it faced many delays. WB reportedly spent $80 million in marketing the film, and while it properly sells the film, many were taken aback by the film's humor and tone. Even though this is consistent with Bong's films, perhaps the audience was expecting something more serious, as sci-fi comedies are very niche.

This also brings up the topic of star power. Robert Pattinson is definitely popular, thanks to his roles in franchises like Harry Potter, Twilight and The Batman. But the thing is that his roles as leading man in non-IPs have not translated to box office success. Most of his films have been limited releases, and his last box office hit besides the three previously mentioned was Water for Elephants, which came out back in 2011. This is not something exclusive to Pattinson, given that a lot of actors have struggled to open original titles. Reviews were positive (78% on RT), but not strong enough to convince those skeptical.

According to Warner Bros., 65% of the audience was male and 71% was 25 and over. They gave it a middling "B" on CinemaScore, which is neither bad nor great. There's a strong chance Mickey 17 could be front-loaded, given that its Thursday previews ($2.5 million) should've guaranteed a $20+ million debut and it fell far short of it. For now, a $50 million domestic total is likely for Mickey 17, marking the latest box office misfire for WB.

After topping the box office for three weekends, Captain America: Brave New World had to go to second place. It dropped 44%, adding $8.3 million this weekend. That's a fine drop, although it would've been ideal if it happened far sooner. Through almost one month, the film has earned $176.4 million, and it should get close to $200 million. Better than its second weekend suggested, but still not really a win.

In third place, Focus Features' Last Breath dropped 48%, adding $4 million this weekend. Through ten days, the film has amassed $14.5 million so far, and it should finish with over $20 million by the end of its run.

In fourth place, Neon's The Monkey eased 39% this weekend, adding $3.9 million this weekend. The film has earned $31 million domestically, and it has already passed I, Tonya ($30 million) to become Neon's third highest film ever.

Paddington in Peru had its best drop yet. It eased just 18% this weekend, adding $3.7 million. The film has earned $36.8 million, and it should close with around $45 million domestically.

DreamWorks' Dog Man dipped a light 20%, earning $3.3 million this weekend. The film's domestic total stands at $88.6 million so far, and it's fighting to hit the $100 million milestone.

After earning 5 Oscar wins, Best Picture winner Anora got expanded to 1,938 theaters. The film earned $1.8 million, taking its domestic total to $18.3 million. Quite impressive, considering it has been on digital platforms since December.

Mufasa refuses to leave the Top 10. It eased just 16% this weekend, adding $1.6 million. With this, it has crossed $250 million domestically.

Angel Studios also opened Rule Breakers in 2,044 theaters, but it flopped with just $1.5 million. That's one of the worst debuts for a film playing at over 2,000 theaters, and translates to a very poor $736 per-theater average. Even with an "A" on CinemaScore, this film will disappear quickly from theaters.

Rounding up the Top 10 was another flop. It was Paul W.S. Anderson's new film, In the Lost Lands, which debuted with a meager $1 million in 1,370 theaters. That's Anderson's worst debut ever, even below Monster Hunter ($2 million), which came out during terrible conditions in December 2020. Expect this to fade quickly.

What's worse than 3 wide releases flopping? 4 wide releases flopping. Viva Pictures released Night of the Zoopocalypse into 1,400 theaters, but it earned just $804,370 this weekend. Pathetic.

OVERSEAS

Mickey 17 also made its appearance worldwide, but it was very unimpressive. The film debuted with $24.5 million overseas; adding its South Korean numbers from last week, the film has earned a weak $53.3 million worldwide. It had very soft debuts in France ($2.9M), the UK ($2.7M), Germany ($1.3M) and Mexico ($1.3M). Its biggest market, unsurprisingly, is South Korea with $14.6 million so far. With these numbers, it's clear Mickey 17 won't be a box office success.

Captain America: Brave New World has added $9.2 million overseas, taking its worldwide numbers to $371 million. The best markets are the UK ($21.2M), Mexico ($14.5M), China ($14.3M), France ($12.8M) and South Korea ($11.2M). The film might actually cross $400 million, although it's still far from breaking even.

Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy added $7.3 million, allowing it to cross $103.8 million in the overseas markets. Its best marekts are the UK ($51.1M), Australia ($8.6M), Netherlands ($5M), Poland ($4.8M) and Germany ($4.1M).

Back in China, Ne Zha 2 made history by crossing $2 billion in the country. In the process, it already passed Avengers: Infinity War to become the sixth highest grossing film worldwide.

FILMS THAT ENDED THEIR RUN THIS WEEK

• Conclave has ended its run with a fantastic $104 million worldwide. That's a great result for an adult drama, and a sign that there's an audience for films like this. Whether you like the film or not, it's great that a film like this could find an audience instead of being sent to straight-to-streaming.

THIS WEEKEND

We've got three wide releases this weekend, and there's a strong chance that there won't be a single film hitting $10 million this weekend.

The first is Paramount's action comedy Novocaine, which stars Jack Quaid as a bank executive with the inability to feel pain who goes out to rescue his coworker after she is taken hostage by a group of bank robbers. The film has already screened for critics, and reviews are quite solid (89% on RT). A possible sleeper hit?

The other release is Steven Soderbergh's newest film, Focus Features' Black Bag. It stars Cate Blanchett, Michael Fassbender, Marisa Abela, Tom Burke, Naomie Harris, Regé-Jean Page, and Pierce Brosnan, and follows an intelligence agent who suspect his wife might be a traitor. Soderbergh is coming off Presence, which made just $9.2 million, becoming one of his lowest grossing titles. Focus has emphasized action and intrigue, and the reviews are currently on fire (91% on RT), so this should have no problem in opening far higher.

Finally, there's The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie. In a twist of fate, WB is not handling this movie, deciding to sell it off instead. The distributor is Ketchup Entertainment, a recent company that hasn't had box office success in the past few years. And it's unlikely this movie changes that trajectory.

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