'Dunkirk' Tops $50 Million in Opening Weekend at the Box Office

PopCulture.com Staff

02/19/2018 11:51 am EST

The latest film from director Christopher Nolan will top this weekend's box office, while Luc Besson's latest fails to garner much attention. Dunkirk is on track for an opening weekend of over $50 million while Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets will open in fifth place at the box office.

Nolan's Dunkirk adapts the real life story of a troop rescue operation during World War II. Dunkirk earned $19.8 million on Friday, including $5.5 million in early Thursday screenings. The film is now on track to earn $50.5 million over the weekend in 3,720 locations.

Girls Trip stars Queen Latifah, Regina Hall, Tiffany Haddish, and Jada Pinkett Smith. The film earned $11.7 million on Friday and is set to earn $30.4 million over the weekend from 2,591 locations.

Last week's number one, War for the Planet of the Apes, slide down to fourth place this weekend while box office rival Spider-Man: Homecoming slipped from second place to third place. The third Planet of the Apes prequel and the first Sony and Marvel Studios Spider-Man collaboration each earned about $6 million on Friday at the box office and both will take in about $21 million each by the end of the weekend.

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets will round out this week's top five box office movies. The French film stars Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevigne as space adventurers and is the highest-budgeted movie in French cinema history with a $180 million price tag. Valerian earned just $6.6 million from 3,553 location on Friday. The film is expected to earn slightly more than $16.7 million over the weekend. That's not a great start in the United States, but the film is tracking well in other markets.

Wonder Woman comes in ninth place this weekend but is on track to become the highest-grossing movie of the summer. Despicable Me 3, Baby Driver, The Big Sick, and Wish Upon fill out the remaining spots in the top ten.

Keep reading to see how this week's box office champions stack up.

1. Dunkirk

Opening Weekend
Friday: $19.8 million
Weekend: $50.5 million

In May 1940, Germany advanced into France, trapping Allied troops on the beaches of Dunkirk. Under air and ground cover from British and French forces, troops were slowly and methodically evacuated from the beach using every serviceable naval and civilian vessel that could be found. At the end of this heroic mission, 330,000 French, British, Belgian and Dutch soldiers were safely evacuated.

Dunkirk written, co-produced and directed by Christopher Nolan. The film stars Fionn Whitehead, Tom Glynn-Carney, Jack Lowden, Harry Styles, Aneurin Barnard, James D'Arcy, Barry Keoghan, Kenneth Branagh, Cillian Murphy, Mark Rylance, and Tom Hardy.

2. Girls Trip

Opening Weekend
Friday: $11.7 million
Weekend: $30.4 million

Best friends Ryan, Sasha, Lisa and Dina are in for the adventure of a lifetime when they travel to New Orleans for the annual Essence Festival. Along the way, they rekindle their sisterhood and rediscover their wild side by doing enough dancing, drinking, brawling and romancing to make the Big Easy blush.

Girls Trip directed by Malcolm D. Lee and written by Kenya Barris and Tracy Oliver, from a story written by Barris, Oliver, and Erica Rivinoja. The film stars Regina Hall, Queen Latifah, Tiffany Haddish, Jada Pinkett Smith, Larenz Tate and Mike Colter.

3. Spider-Man: Homecoming

Week Three
Last Week: No. 2
Friday: $6.4 million
Weekend: $21.6 million
Total: $251.3 million.

In Spider-Man: Homecoming, thrilled by his experience with the Avengers, young Peter Parker returns home to live with his Aunt May. Under the watchful eye of mentor Tony Stark, Parker starts to embrace his newfound identity as Spider-Man. He also tries to return to his normal daily routine -- distracted by thoughts of proving himself to be more than just a friendly neighborhood superhero. Peter must soon put his powers to the test when the evil Vulture emerges to threaten everything that he holds dear.

Spider-Man: Homecoming is directed by Jon Watts, from a screenplay by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, Watts and Christopher Ford, and Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. Spider-Man: Homecoming stars Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Jon Favreau, Donald Glover, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Laura Harrier, Tyne Daly, Marisa Tomei, and Robert Downey Jr.

4. War for the Planet of the Apes

Week Two
Last Week: No. 1
Friday: $6 million
Weekend: $21.7 million
Total: $99.1 million

Caesar (Andy Serkis) and his apes are forced into a deadly conflict with an army of humans led by a ruthless colonel (Woody Harrelson). After the apes suffer unimaginable losses, Caesar wrestles with his darker instincts and begins his own mythic quest to avenge his kind. As the journey finally brings them face to face, Caesar and the colonel are pitted against each other in an epic battle that will determine the fate of both of their species and the future of the planet.

War for the Planet of the Apes is written and directed by Matt Reeves and stars Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson, Steve Zahn, Amiah Miller, Karin Konoval, Judy Greer and Terry Notary.

5. Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planet

Opening Weekend
Friday: $6.6 millionWeekend: $16.7 million

In the 28th century, special operatives Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline work together to maintain order throughout the human territories. Under assignment from the minister of defense, the duo embarks on a mission to Alpha, an ever-expanding metropolis where diverse species gather to share knowledge and culture. When a dark force threatens the peaceful city, Valerian and Laureline must race against time to identify the menace that also jeopardizes the future of the universe.

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets is written and directed by Luc Besson and co-produced by Besson and Virginie Besson-Silla, based on the French science fiction comics series Valérian and Laureline, written by Pierre Christin and illustrated by Jean-Claude Mézières.

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