It was a very interesting weekend at the box office here in the United States. While the Sam Raimi-produced action-thriller Boy Kills World failed to make a splash and Radio Silence’s hugely entertaining vampire movie Abigail continues to make far less money than it deserves, two genre movies from the distant past managed to make their own mark on the charts.
Both Ridley Scott’s 1979 horror classic Alien and the Brendan Fraser-starring action-horror movie The Mummy (1999) were re-released into theaters, the former film celebrating its 45th anniversary and the latter movie returning to theaters for its 25th anniversary.
Which film came out on top, you might be wondering? The original Alien won this particular battle, coming in at #11 on the weekend charts. The Mummy currently sits in the #14 spot.
While Alien scared up $1,563,000 in its re-release weekend and The Mummy pulled in a bit less at $1,040,000, it’s important to note that Alien received a wider release. Alien found its way into 1,750 theaters, while The Mummy was re-released into 1,236 theaters. If released in the same amount of theaters, it’s pretty safe to say those numbers would be even closer.
The bigger story here is that Alien – a 45 year old movie – made just about as much this past weekend as Boy Kills World ($1,675,475), a new release that opened in 1,993 theaters. It’s a testament to the enduring power of both Alien and The Mummy that they each had million dollar weekends all these years later, and a reminder that theaters provide something extra special to audiences that they can’t quite get from streaming and physical media releases at home. If theaters are playing something audiences actually want to see, they will show up.
Both Alien and The Mummy are still playing in theaters as we start a brand new week, so be sure to check your local listings if you’re eager to revisit them on the biggest screen possible.
They’re now playing for a limited time only.
