Jackass Forever Will Win Weekend Box Office (Even With Franchise Low)
Jackass Forever is poised to take the #1 slot in the box office this weekend. The latest stunt comedy movie is the fourth film in the main theatrical branch of the franchise, which began with the show Jackass that premiered on MTV in 2000 and ran for three seasons. This film reteams the classic Jackass crew, including Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, and director Jeff Tremaine, bringing on new team members and celebrity guests willing to subject themselves to death-defying stunts and over-the-top pranks. Jackass Forever received overwhelmingly positive reviews prior to its release in theaters, heralding the return of the classic pranksters.
Jackass Forever was released alongside the new Roland Emmerich disaster film Moonfall starring Patrick Wilson and Halle Berry. The arrival of the pair of films is providing a much-needed boost to the American box office, which has seen a particularly barren January. The past two weekends have been completely devoid of new major wide-release films, so Spider-Man: No Way Home's climb up the all-time charts has continued unabated since its release on December 17, 2021. It has continued to take the #1 slot after the meta-slasher sequel Scream briefly knocked it to #2 the weekend of January 14.
Per The Wrap, Jackass Forever is projected to win the weekend, potentially ending Spider-Man: No Way Home's reign at the top for good this time. The film is looking at an opening weekend of over $20 million, which is a relatively strong showing in this particularly shaky time for pandemic-era box office. Moonfall is taking second place with a projected $9.4 million, though it could potentially be bested by Spider-Man, which is also eyeing a take around $9 million. Scream and Sing 2 are going to fill out the top 5.
Jackass Forever's opening weekend take will likely be the lowest of the franchise, but not by much. The first film, which came to theaters in 2002, had an opening weekend of $22 million and the first follow-up film grossed around $29 million. None of them have been able to compare to the tremendous returns of 2010's Jackass 3D, which took home $50 million in its domestic opening, or the Oscar-nominated Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa with its sizeable $32 million.
Jackass Forever will be the fourth legacy film in a row to take the #1 slot. Scream brought back its core cast for another slasher adventure in Woodsboro, and Spider-Man rose to the top on the back of resurrecting characters from previous franchises featuring the character, but they were preceded by the splashy Steven Spielberg West Side Story remake, which featured an extended cameo from Rita Moreno. Hollywood has clearly learned that the way to succeed in this shaky time for box office is to combine nostalgia with new blood, and it remains to be seen what the first original project to break this streak will be.
Source: The Wrap