The butler did it for September’s week three with a $31 million plus debut for Downton Abbey, not only landing in the top box office slot but also handing its studio its biggest opening ever. Indeed, the British flick about the “good ol’ days” left stars Brad Pitt and Sylvester Stallone fighting for second place in their debut weekends.
Focus Feature’s Downton Abbey amazed the studio with its strong debut and its number one status, this weekend. The film smashed both the studio’s expectations of a $20 million opening and, with a debut of about $31.8 million. Focus Features last made $22.7 million for 2015’s Insidious: Chapter 3, Variety reported.
Just as amazing is the fact that the film comes a full three years after the ITV series ended its first run airing in the U.S. and four years since it wrapped up in Britain.
The breakout success of Abbey leaves the Brad Pitt vehicle, Ad Astra, and the Sylvester Stallone series capper, Rambo: Last Blood, fighting for the second place slot for the weekend, but it appears that Pitt’s space opera will take the prize.
Fox’s sci-fi epic, Ad Astra, debuted barely to the studio’s expectations with an opening of about $19.2 million from nearly 3,500 theaters. The film stars Brad Pitt as an astronaut who must travel across the galaxy to find his father and solve the mystery of his disappearance. Tommy Lee Jones stars as Pitt’s astronaut father.
The Pitt-starer faces stiff competition from the last entry in Sylvester Stallone’s action series, Rambo: Last Blood. Thus far, Rambo has earned about $18.2 million. Stallone’s final chapter in the Rambo saga is debuting in keeping with the opening weekend take earned by its earlier installments.
The final two films in the top five are holdovers, including It: Chapter Two, which made an additional $17.2 million, and in fifth place, Jennifer Lopez’ Hustlers, which earned another $17 million.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.
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