"The Predator" opened at the top of the September 14-16 box office. But it was a pretty weak weekend.

Congrats anyway?

Shane Black's "Predator" debuted to an estimated $24 million, which put it toward the lower end of the $23 million-$32 million projections. Since the movie cost at least $88 million to make, and opened in 4,037 theaters, that's ... not that great. Its opening ranked third in the "Predator" franchise (not adjusted for inflation), behind "Alien vs. Predator" ($38.2 million) and "Predators" ($24.7 million).

"The Predator" wasn't helped by lackluster reviews (from both critics and audiences) and a C+ Cinemascore. Plus, there was all the publicity about the registered sex offender. And of course Hurricane Florence.

Still, "The Predator" took No. 1. "The Nun" -- which opened to $53.5 million last week -- took second this week with $18.2 million. That's a drop of 66.2 percent from its huge debut.

"A Simple Favor" took third with $16.5 million. Since that Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively film only cost about $20 million, and was released on fewer screens than "The Predator" and "The Nun," that's a solid opening. It surpassed its more limited projections of $12M-$15M. It's also getting strong reviews (from both critics and audiences) and landed a B+ Cinemascore. According to Deadline, studios consider it a "word of mouth" movie that should have legs. We'll see.

After the top three, the box office take drops pretty dramatically. "White Boy Rick" -- starring Matthew McConaughey -- opened in fourth place with about $8.8 million, off a $29 million budget. That's rough. It was very closely followed by "Crazy Rich Asians" picking up another $8.7 million.

The rest of the top 10 included "Peppermint," "The Meg," "Searching," new film "Unbroken: Path to Redemption," and "Mission: Impossible - Fallout."

What's next?

September 21 brings "The Sisters Brothers," "Life Itself," "Night School," "The House With a Clock in Its Walls," and more.  Check out what's coming to a theater near you. There's some REALLY good stuff coming in October.

[Via: Deadline, Box Office Mojo, Variety]

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