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 worldwide ticket sales on Monday and took home the coveted $1 billion title at the box office.
Without too much standing in its way, box office analysts expect “Maverick” to cross that threshold 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 momentum at the domestic box office, generating strong ticket sales through its fourth week in theaters. The film debuted with $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, the sales of big budget films drop between 50 and 70 percent from the first week to the second week.
“Maverick” continued to hold strong as it raked in another $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 said that “Maverick” was well-reviewed and action-packed, and also generated considerable word of mouth, which brought back the original film’s audience 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, who have been reticent to return to theaters since the height of the pandemic. Young filmmakers usually drive the bulk of blockbuster ticket sales, but films that entice older customers to return will be an important part of the film industry’s recovery from the pandemic.
“Kudos should be given to Paramount Pictures, who have been a perfect partner for Tom Cruise over the years, and are especially waiting for the right moment to open the film in theaters and put the streaming release on a whim due to the challenges of the pandemic.” comScore’s Dergarbadian said. “‘Top Gun: Maverick’ is a textbook example of how you make billions of dollars right at the box office.”