Since I know nothing about cricket, please insert your own cricket pun here to reflect the fact that Sachin: A Billion Dreams had a good opening weekend at the North American box office. From May 26-28, 2017, Sachin earned $334,402 from 112 theaters ($2,986 average; adjusted average of $3,344 from 100 theaters*). Keep in mind that total doesn’t include returns from Monday’s Memorial Day holiday in the United States.
Sachin‘s solid performance was enough to finally dethrone Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, which took in $274,803 from 119 theaters ($2,309 average). Its total after five weekends is an astounding $20,476,672.
Hindi Medium is proving to be 2017’s first sleeper hit, even adding a theater in its second weekend of release. (The only other film to add theaters this year was Badrinath Ki Dulhania.) Hindi Medium held on to 2/3s of its opening weekend business, putting it first in that category by almost 20% (ahead of Badrinath). In its second weekend, Hindi Medium earned $151,159 from 59 theaters for an average of $2,562 per theater. That’s the best second-weekend-average of the year for every Hindi film besides Baahubali 2. Hindi Medium‘s total stands at $485,804.
Half Girlfriend also held up well in its second weekend, even if its performance pales a bit compared to Hindi Medium. Half Girlfriend earned $50,650 from 51 theaters ($993 average), bringing its total to $401,306 — good enough to rank in the top half of Bollywood movies released in North America this year.
Other Bollywood movies still in US theaters:
- Sarkar 3: Week 3; $803 from three theaters; $268 average; $243,495 total
- Meri Pyaari Bindu: Week 3; $436 from one theater; $174,801 total
*Bollywood Hungama frequently counts Canadian theaters twice in when they report figures for a film’s first few weeks of release. When possible, I verify theater counts at Box Office Mojo, but I use Bollywood Hungama as my primary source because they provide a comprehensive and consistent — if flawed — data set.
Source: Rentrak, via Bollywood Hungama