Rob Marshall, the filmmaker behind “Chicago” and “Into the Woods,” directed Mary Poppins Returns, which cost $130 million before a global marketing push. The film features new music from Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman. The sequel to the 1964 original, which starred Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, will debut in Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the U.K., Belgium, Netherlands, and Austria this weekend.
Paramount’s Bumblebee, its sixth entry in the “Transformers” franchise, reeled in $2.2 million on Thursday night, in addition to $700,000 on a Dec. 8 preview.
Bumblebee, starring Hailee Steinfeld in a prequel to the 2007 original “Transformers,” is expanding to 3,550 domestic locations on Friday. The pic is expected to earn about $30 million in its first three days. The film has generated favorite reviews, with 94% “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
STXfilms’ romantic comedy Second Act starring Jennifer Lopez, debuted with a moderate $515,000 on Thursday night and will expand to 2,607 locations on Friday. And Universal-DreamWorks Pictures’ “Welcome to Marwen” made a quiet $190,000 in previews from 1,600 theaters on Thursday night and widens to 1,900 sites on Friday. Both titles have generated forecasts for opening weekends of $7 million to $13 million.
