Los Angeles. If someone had been given the mission to find something negative to say about the commercial performance of Avengers: Age of Ultron he or she could point out that the Disney/Marvel property dropped 60% in its second weekend in the U.S. market, whereas the original Avengers dropped only 50%. But that’s about all. To begin with, a 60% drop is typical for big openers and with a domestic haul of  $77.2 million, this will be remembered as the second best second weekend in history (with first place going to Avengers, with $103 million). It also means Ultron has generated $312 million domestically in just ten days. That, of course, still leaves the other countries of the planet, where Ultron in its third weekend got an extra $68 million, for a worldwide total so far of $562 million. So far, because in Japan the film hasn’t yet opened, nor has it bowed in China, where it is set to open on May 12, the day when everyone expects it to pass the $1 billion mark. The first Avengers managed to squeeze just $86 million out of the Chinese box office, but that was in another era – three long years ago. In the current climate, where Transformers went over $300 million and Furious 7 is close to $400 million, Ultron is expected to end up in that range.  
 
So, those who were predicting that Ultron was going to mark the demise of Marvel will have to wait another day. In three weeks, its worldwide haul is ahead of the lifetime grosses of Captain America ($371 million), of Iron Man ($583 million) and Iron Man 2 ($622 million), of Captain America: The Winter Soldier ($714 million) and of Guardians of the Galaxy ($774 million). And the big question now is whether Ultron will manage to pass the
$1.5 billion reached by Avengers or if it will have to settle with just being close to that astonishing number. Let’s talk about other titles. Hot Pursuit was not as hot as MGM and New Line had hoped. The comedy starring Reese Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara as an odd couple on the run was designed with women in mind and its audience was indeed 62% female. Mrs. Witherspoon got a Golden Globe and an Academy nomination for Wild just a few months ago and produced the critically acclaimed Gone Girl. Ms. Vergara attracts the booming Latino market and is considered very “hot” across any ethnicity. But Hot Pursuit had to deal with pretty bad reviews, the women who came were not as many and its  first run ended with a disappointing $13.3 million. Not as bad, however, as another new offering, The D-Train, starring Jack Black and James Marsden. Over one thousand screens generated less than half a million dollars, for an embarrassing $475 per screen average. The D-Train also earned the distinction of producing the fifth worst opening in history for a production playing in over 600 theaters. Finally, with a limited play, there was Maggie, a zombie family drama with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Abigail Breslin. Eighty theaters generated just $131,000 and it looks like the Governator will have to wait for yet another movie to revitalize his career, possibly resting his hopes on this summer’s Terminator: Genisys?
 
Among holdovers, The Age of Adaline placed at number 3. It managed to lose just 10% in its third week and by adding $5.6 million it now stands at a domestic total of $31.5 million. Furious 7 came fourth domestically, adding  $5.2 million and reaching an extraordinary global total of $1.466 billion. Fifth place went to Paul Blart Mall Cop 2, as independent hit Ex Machina moved up to sixth place grossing $3.5 million for a total cume of $15.7 million. By adding $3 million, Home ended up seventh domestically and its worldwide total stands now at $342 million.
Next weekend we will witness the release of Pitch Perfect 2 and of the much anticipated Mad Max: Fury Road. Starring Anna Kendrick and local star Rebel Wilson, Pitch Perfect 2 managed to generate over $7 million out of Australia, where it became the first title in the world to unseat Ultron since the Marvel movie opened three weeks ago. But everybody’s eyes will be on another property with deep Australian roots: George Miller’s Mad Max, with Tom Hardy in the title role of the iconic series that in 1979 launched an Aussie called Mel Gibson. And with Charlize Theron as the untamable Imperator Furiosa.
Lorenzo Soria