John Wick 4: $73M+ Sunday Box Office Update: Franchise Record, Best For Lionsgate In Pandemic Era

John Wick: Chapter 4 debuts at $25.8M and follows John Wick Chapter 3’s Friday/previews to Saturday trajectory of -12%. A revised franchise and Lionsgate pandemic record opening of $73.5M results from this. With $137.5M, the worldwide start is likewise a franchise best, as we always thought it would be. In each of the 71 cities where it debuted this weekend, the Keanu Reeves film opened at No. 1. The movie outperformed all pre-release projections, earning an estimated $64M internationally.

In the United States, it is Reeves’ second-best live-action premiere after Matrix Reloaded’s $91.7M domestic gross, while globally, it is probably the actor’s second-best debut after Matrix Revolutions’ $201.4M global opening in 2003.

Only nine movie franchises in the previous 40 years have set a franchise record with their fourth installment, including John Wick. Only five of those nine franchises have succeeded in building to four films, with each release outperforming the previous one (i.e., 4 more than 3, 3 larger than 2, and 2 greater than 1), as John Wick has.

John Wick: Chapter 4 outperforms Halloween Kills’ $49.4M (which was handicapped by a theatrical day-and-date release on streaming site Peacock) as the biggest R-rated opening post-pandemic.

John Wick: Chapter 4 currently has the second-best domestic debut of 2023, after only Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania ($106.1M) from Disney/Marvel Studios.

It’s interesting to note that this is allegedly Reeves’ final appearance in the main series, and

At the North American box office, the fourth sequel debuted with more money than No Time to Die ($55.2M).

In contrast to Quantumania’s 7M admissions, 5M people saw the fourth sequel this weekend, according to box office analytics company EntTelligence.

As was anticipated for this R-rated sequel, there was steady attendance throughout matinees as well as a strong showing after 8PM. Yesterday, 14% arrived before 1 PM, 30% between 1 PM and 5 PM, 31% between 5 PM and 8 PM, and 25% after 8 PM. Comparatively, 33% of Scream VI’s admissions occurred after 8 PM.

Regular tickets for John Wick: Chapter 4 cost an average of $13.42, while premium seats were priced at $17.08. Currently, 32% of moviegoers have paid an average of $9.99 to watch the movie in a premium format.

$2.99 more per ticket. Imax reports that at $12.7M WW, John Wick: Chapter 4 is the second-highest grossing Lionsgate title ever in their large format auditoriums. With $8.4M stateside in 400 Imax theaters, the fourthquel is the third-highest Imax opening for Lionsgate in U.S./Canada. Top markets for the Chad Stahelski-directed sequel in regards to admissions were LA, NYC, Dallas, Toronto, and San Francisco.

Due to a development delay, Lionsgate rescheduled the release of John Wick: Chapter 4 from its original Memorial Day weekend 2022 release date to this weekend. Top Gun: Maverick had previously taken up that slot at Paramount. The first trailer was unveiled at CinemaCon last spring before being released at the Collider panel with Chad Stahelski and a surprise visit by Keanu Reeves in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con. The candle for candle was lighted at a surprise SXSW showing with Reeves and Stahelski in attendance onstage. Lionsgate had a global screening and premiere strategy which was meant to increase audience and critical word of mouth.

The campaign’s remaining phases were centered on two pillars: one to support that Love and a tragic loss have served as the driving forces behind John Wick’s journey as a man, not a superhero. And second, that John Wick would eventually find a way to freedom and serenity in this film. All of the strategies developed by Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Vice Chair Adam Fogelson, Lionsgate Marketing President JP Richards, Co-President Keri Moore, and their team were based on these pillars, from the timing of the full trailer to the music used in it, to the hourglass image on the main one sheet, to the use of dogs in both creative and publicity.