Skyscraper, the new action film starring Dwayne Johnson, is projected to be the actor's lowest opening since Baywatch. In an era where franchises have more pull than individual names, The Rock is one of the few exceptions. His presence can make any film a hit, as evidenced by some of his recent outings. Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle actually ranks as Sony's highest-grossing film of all-time, and Johnson's original vehicles like San Andreas and Central Intelligence were also successful.
Johnson was even able to handle the video game curse earlier this year when Rampage earned $425.1 million against a production budget of $120 million. He's hoping to keep his hot streak alive with this week's Skyscraper, but it looks like the throwback is going to land with a smaller impact than what Johnson is used to.
Related: The Improbable Skyscraper Poster Deserved Your Memes
Per Box Office Pro, Skyscraper is expected to earn approximately $33 million in its first three days. This would be the star's lowest opening weekend since the aforementioned Baywatch, which debuted to $18.5 million last summer. In between then and now, Johnson headlined Jumanji ($36.1 million) and Rampage ($35.7 million). Obviously, Skyscraper is in that ballpark, though it's set to make a little less.
There are a few reasons for why this is the case. For starters, critical response to Skyscraper has been mixed, with most agreeing that it's a derivative - yet competently made - thriller. Since few people are raving about it, the film is going to have a bit of an uphill climb to stand out. Marvel's Ant-Man and the Wasp is still early in its theatrical run, and this weekend also sees the premiere of Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation. While that particular franchise has never posted Pixar numbers, it still does well for its target demographic, and this latest installment should draw sizable crowds. Estimates have Summer Vacation pegged for $45 million this weekend, which is comparable to the previous two installments. It's the first high-profile animated film since Incredibles 2 a month ago, so families are ready for something new.
Elsewhere in the top five, Incredibles 2 is projected to earn $15.4 million and finish in fourth. This would put it past Rogue One and The Dark Knight on the all-time domestic charts with $535.2 million. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom should come in fifth with $13.9 million, raising its domestic total to $361.3 million. Both of these movies currently reside in the top five on the 2018 charts, and are among just the handful of titles all year that have grossed $300+ million in the United States.
MORE: Read Screen Rant's Skyscraper Review
Source: Box Office Pro
