Box Office: ‘Now You See Me 3’ Sprinting to Surprise $22M Win as ‘Running Man’ Chokes

It looks like 'Now You See Me 3' is sprinting to a surprise $21M-$24M Win as 'Running Man' chokes at the box office. Paramount's big-budget 'The Running Man' may have trouble opening to much more than $17 million in the first box office miss for actor Glen Powell since achieving movie star status.

via: THR

Directed by Ruben Fleischer, Now You See Me 3 topped Friday’s chart with $8.4 million for a better-than-expected opening of $21 million to $24 million from 3,403 theaters, according to studio insiders. (Rival studios show the threequel debuting in the $22 million range.)

Among its bag of tricks? Females are turning out in droves to see the third installment in the long-dormant franchise about a group of thieving magicians, buying up 54 percent of all tickets sold so far. And solid exit scores among moviegoers are more than making up for so-so reviews, including a B+ CinemaScore and an 80 percent audience ranking on Rotten Tomatoes.

The film reunites franchise stalwarts Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco and Isla Fisher. Their characters, known as the Four Horsemen, are joined by a trio of younger magicians played by Justice Smith, Ariana Greenblatt and Dominic Sessa.

Heading into the weekend, Now You See Me 3 was tracking to debut in the $19 million range, while Running Man was tracking to top the chart with $24 million-$25 million. Paramount, however, was more cautious in suggesting $20 million. Based on Friday’s gross of $6.4 million from 3,534 cinemas, the studio has lowered its estimate to $17 million to $19 million. Rivals, however, show it coming in even lower, or $16 million.

Directed by Edgar Wright, Running Man‘s cast is led by Glen Powell. The pic marks the actor’s first box office miss since he rose to fame after starring in a string of hits, including Twisters, Anybody But You and Top Gun: Maverick.