“The Social Reckoning” has suffered a disappointing debut at the Australian box office, following a similarly lacklustre opening in the United States.
The film opened in eighth place over the weekend (Thursday, October 8th – Sunday, October 11th), generating just $480,000 in ticket sales and failing to make a significant impact on local audiences. The result mirrors the film’s underwhelming performance in the US, where it also struggled to attract moviegoers, landing in fifth place with US$5.5 million.
Written and directed by Aaron Sorkin, the “companion piece” to 2010’s “The Social Network” stars Mikey Madison, Jeremy Allen White and Jeremy Strong, and explores the Facebook whistleblower scandal that exposed the platform’s harmful practices. Variety criticised the film for feeling outdated, arguing that it lacks the emotional depth, urgency and visual flair of David Fincher’s original.
Meanwhile, “Verity,” starring Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson, continued its strong run at the local box office, holding onto the No. 1 position with another $2.16 million. The film has now accumulated $8.11 million in Australia.
Horror newcomer “Other Mommy” proved more successful in its Australian debut, entering the chart in second place with $1.6 million over the weekend. Starring Jessica Chastain as a double-jointed doppelgänger from hell, the film landed well above expectations, despite being one of the worst-reviewed movies of the year.
“Resident Evil” followed in third with $905,000, pushing its cumulative Australian earnings to $12 million. In fourth place, “Heart of the Beast” added $886,000 to its total, which now stands at $6.27 million, while “Forgotten Island” rounded out the top five with $744,000, bringing its overall haul to $6.75 million.
Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” continued to demonstrate its staying power, landing in sixth place during its 13th weekend in cinemas. The blockbuster collected another $550,000, taking its Australian box office total to an impressive $69.1 million.
Love Film & TV?
Get your daily dose of everything happening in music, film and TV in Australia and abroad.
Hindi-language film “Drishyam: The Conclusion” secured seventh place with $542,000, bringing its cumulative earnings to $2.19 million.
Following “The Social Reckoning” in eighth place, rounding out the top 10 were “Coyote vs. Acme” with $461,000 and “PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie” with $443,000.
According to Hoyts, the top 10 movies together contributed to 79% of the total national gross box office for the weekend.