NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JULY 22: Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds attend the Deadpool & Wolverine World … [+]
Blake Lively’s It Ends with Us is opening at the box office against Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool & Wolverine, setting up a rare wife and husband weekend movie battle.
Lively stars as Lily Bloom in the hotly anticipated romantic drama. Also produced by Lively, It Ends with Us is a PG-13 adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s 2016 bestselling novel of the same name.
Reynolds, meanwhile, is producing and stars as Deadpool/Wade Wilson in the R-rated Deadpool & Wolverine, the third film in the Deadpool movie franchise.
Coming into the weekend, Deadpool & Wolverine—which also stars Hugh Jackman in his iconic role of Wolverine—earned, per The Numbers, $440 million at the domestic box office.
The first-ever R-rated entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe hasn’t faced any worthy challengers since its opening in theaters on July 26—that is, until now.
Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds at the “It Ends With Us” New York Premiere at AMC Lincoln Square … [+]
Reynolds Will Take The Weekend Box Office Crown But Lively Wins Friday
Sony Pictures Entertainment reported Saturday that It Ends with Us—which is being distributed by Columbia Pictures/Wayfarer Studios—is projected to earn anywhere from $45 million to $49 million in its opening weekend.
According to Deadline—it appears Lively will fall short in her bid to take the domestic box office crown from Reynolds, but not by the wide margin of Deadpool & Wolverine’s previous competitors.
The trade publication projected Deadpool & Wolverine—which is being distributed by Disney subsidiary 20th Century Studios—will remain in the No. 1 slot at the domestic box office with $55.8 million in ticket sales in the Friday-Sunday frame.
Lively can claim one victory, though. Per Deadline, It Ends with Us earned $24 million in North American theaters on Friday whereas Deadpool & Wolverine took in $15 million.
Also worthy to note is that Deadpool & Wolverine has a larger screen count than It Ends with Us.
The Numbers reported that Deadpool & Wolverine—which is being distributed by Disney’s 20th Century Studios—is playing in 4,330 theaters, up 100 screens from a week ago. It Ends with Us, meanwhile, is debuting in 3,611 theaters.
In addition to its Friday-Sunday take, Sony reported that It Ends with Us earned $7 million at 3,071 locations.
Note: This box office report will be updated on Sunday with numbers for the top five films domestically and internationally. The final numbers for the weekend box office will be released on Monday.