BOX OFFICE: “Scary Movie” is the real “Master of the Universe”

Don’t look now, but The Wayans Film Fam is back on the radar and atop the box office.

The Thursday night take for the relaunch of their TWENTY-SIX year old franchise was good, if not epic — just under $8 million. But this latest raunchy riff on all that’s horrific at the cinema blew up to a $23-24 million Friday.

And Deadline.com is projecting a $52-$53 million weekend out of that. Saturday could push that down a smidge — to $50ish — or into the mid-$50s if word of mouth ordains it.

Reviews have been scanty — perhaps critics are boycotting this Colbert-canning/Trump-kowtowing Paramount product. And what reviews there are haven’t been good. Spoofing scores of horror titles for fans who “get” the joke, whether or not that joke works, is pretty played if not downright dated. It’s over-performing despite the fact that there were five earlier “Scary Movies” and the Wayans on the job this time around — Marlon and Shawn and Kim and Damon Jr. and sister Deidra’s son Gregg — are all past the age of their moviegoing audience.

They cast has-beens from Chris Elliott to Cheri Oteri and Carmen Elektra and bringing in “SNL’s” venerable Kenan Thompson and bringing back Anna Faris, which didn’t exactly make this “hip.” But a hit is a hit and there you go.

The re-launch of “Masters of the Universe” with a new “He-Man” (Nicholas Galitzine), with Dolph Lundgren appearing in old-guy support, is paying off a lot less handsomely. A $12 million Thursday night/Friday puts $30 million in reach, $35 as probably the ceiling on this toy-based action fantasy.

Middling reviews for that one, but that fanbase is still there. Apparently. As “Masters of the Universe” cost almost $200 million, well…

“Real” horror blockbusters “Backrooms” ($27-28 million) and “Obsession” ($25-26) are fighting over third and fourth this weekend.

And the big screen version of the Youtube animated series “The Amazing Digital Circus” — titled “The Amazing Digital Circus: Last Act,” is riding Fathom Events screens to a $13-15 million opening weekend to take fifth. It actually outdrew “Scary Movie” Thursday night, but its weekend is shaping up as one long plunge from that nearly $8 million evening.

So guess what? Disney’s lame “Mandalorian and Groku” is out of the top five.

“Michael” and “The Breadwinner” and “The Sheep Detectives” and “Pressure” and the dreadful “Mortal Kombat” and/or “Super Mario Brothers” will fight over the last four spots with the latter two joining “I Love Boosters” and “Devil Wears Prada 2” as likely exiting the top ten.

I’ll update these figures as Saturday and Sunday data comes in.

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About Roger Moore

Movie Critic, formerly with McClatchy-Tribune News Service, Orlando Sentinel, published in Spin Magazine, The World and now published here, Orlando Magazine, Autoweek Magazine
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