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Jordan Peele's Us Projected To Top Get Out's Box Office Opening Weekend
Jordan Peele's Us is projected to top Get Out's opening weekend at the box office. Back in 2017, the former star of Comedy Central's Key & Peele announced himself as a unique and captivating filmmaker with Get Out. A satirical and horrifying exploration of American race relations, the movie was a critical and commercial smash, earning $255.4 million at the worldwide box office and an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. Immediately, Peele became an in-demand director and had his choice of franchise fare, but he opted to craft another original work.
That film, Us, is scheduled to hit theaters in a little under a month and ranks among 2019's most anticipated offerings. Starring Black Panther's Winston Duke and Lupita Nyong'o, its story revolves around a family who find themselves doing battle against evil doppelgängers of mysterious origins. Universal has gotten viewers excited for Us with a well-received trailer and a Super Bowl spot. It looks like those marketing efforts will be successful, as Us is poised to do very well at the box office.
According to Deadline, Us is estimated to earn between $35-40 million in its first three days domestically. Either of those figures would be higher than Get Out, which debuted to the tune of $33.3 million a couple years ago.
It's worth keeping in mind that these are initial early projections and could fluctuate as Us' release date draws closer. The film will have its world premiere at the SXSW Film Festival in early March, after which reactions will surely hit the internet. If word-of-mouth is comparable to Get Out, then it's possible Us exceeds these expectations and posts an even higher opening weekend. Universal smartly pushed the film's theatrical debut back a week to give it more breathing room between Captain Marvel, which should earn more than $100 million in its first frame. As a result, Us will face minimal competition as it gets its run started, which should only benefit its commercial prospects.
The multiplex is going to get a little crowded this spring, with the likes of Dumbo, Pet Sematary, and Shazam all opening shortly after Us comes out. Even with all those high-profile titles, Peele's latest should be in solid shape commercially. Its target demographic is obviously quite different from a live-action Disney remake or a superhero movie, and its budget is small enough that it should make all of its money back in no time at all. Hopefully, it all turns out well and Us goes on to become one of the year's biggest hits.
Us (2019) release date: Mar 22, 2019
