Sony's Uncharted is officially courting box office success as it earns the biggest opening for a video game adaptation since 2020's Sonic the Hedgehog. For several years, it wasn't even clear if Uncharted would make it to this moment. The adaptation of the beloved video game series has been in development since 2008, but suffered numerous creative delays. Uncharted finally got off the ground with Ruben Fleischer at the helm; it stars Tom Holland as a young Nathan Drake as he embarks on his first real treasure-hunting mission alongside future mentor Victor "Sully" Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg) and tentative ally Chloe Frazer (Sophia Ali).
Going into this weekend, Uncharted was a bit of a question mark in regards to its box office prospects. The movie's long-awaited nature, as well as lukewarm reviews, could've spelled trouble. It also didn't help that video game adaptations can be hit-or-miss, and some Uncharted fans took issue with the decision to make the movie a prequel. Last week, industry projections suggested Uncharted could open within the $30 million range. As the weekend got underway, though, the estimates increased drastically.
Now it looks like Nathan and Sully have struck gold. Per THR, Uncharted is now on track to earn $51 million domestically over the 4-day President's Day weekend. The current 3-day estimated total is $44.2 million, which makes it the highest opening for a video game adaptation since Sonic the Hedgehog two years ago. All told, Uncharted has notched the fourth-biggest 3-day opening for a video game movie, coming behind Sonic, 2019's Pokémon Detective Pikachu, and 2001's Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. Sony president Josh Greenstein said in a statement:
“This result is yet another extraordinary testament to the appetite for the theatrical experience that Sony Pictures bet on. Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg are brilliant together. Thank you to our sister company, PlayStation, for their incredible partnership, and all the many people who worked so hard to bring this film to life in a big, theatrical way.”
Elsewhere, Channing Tatum's Dog earned a solid $15.1 million 3-day total and is projected to hit $18.1 million for the 4-day weekend. With both new releases coming in ahead of expectations, it looks like this weekend is a very good one for the domestic box office. Save for the residual earnings from 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home (which also stars Holland) and Scream in January, the 2022 box office has been rather quiet so far. Last weekend, both Death on the Nile and Marry Me struggled to make an impact, so the surprise overperformance of Uncharted is positive news.
It also bodes well for the future of the franchise. Though Uncharted still has a ways to go before it can breakeven, that it didn't stumble upon arrival is already a good sign. Audiences so far seem to be responding well to this Uncharted, and Fleischer shot two post-credits scenes that directly lead to follow-ups. If Uncharted continues to perform well both domestically and internationally, don't be surprised if Holland's Drake returns for another big screen adventure. The next few weeks might prove essential in securing a sequel for this long-awaited movie.
Source: THR