Box Office: 'Jason Bourne' Eyes $55M-Plus Bow; 'Bad Moms' Could Crack $33M
Matt Damon in ‘Jason Bourne’ (Universal); Kathryn Hahn in ‘Bad Moms’ (STX Entertainment)
By Pamela McClintock, Rebecca Ford, The Hollywood Reporter
Audiences are embracing Matt Damon’s return as Jason Bourne after a nine-year hiatus.
Universal’s Jason Bourne is on course to win the North American weekend box-office race with $55 million-plus from 4,026 theaters, according to early Friday returns. That would easily best the $38.1 million opening of the last film in the spy action series, The Bourne Legacy, which starred Jeremy Renner, but comes behind the $69 million debut of The Bourne Ultimatum, featuring Damon.
Related: ‘Jason Bourne’ Premiere: Matt Damon Poses With Fans in London and More Photos From the Red Carpet
Based on matinee business, the male-skewing movie could gross north of $20 million on Friday alone, including $4.2 million in Thursday-night previews.
Jason Bourne, costing $120 million to produce, reunites Damon with director Paul Greengrass, who helmed The Bourne Supremacy (2004) and The Bourne Ultimatum (2007).
The latest installment sees Damon’s former CIA operative come out of hiding just as a new government program has been created to hunt him down while he tries to recover all of his memories. Alicia Vikander, Tommy Lee Jones, Vincent Cassel, Julia Stiles, and Riz Ahmed also star.
STX Entertainment’s Bad Moms is also impressing. The R-rated pic, which earned $2 million Thursday night, is pacing to earn $33 million for the weekend from 3,215 locations in a needed boost for R-rated comedies.
Related: ‘Bad Moms’ Premiere: Mila Kunis and Kristen Bell Make Predictions for Sequel
Bad Moms was directed and written by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, and follows a trio of overworked and under-appreciated moms who embark on an adventure of freedom and self-indulgence.
And finally, Nerve, Lionsgate’s thriller starring Emma Roberts and Dave Franco is expected to gross a strong $15 million over its five-day debut after hitting theaters Wednesday. It earned another $2.3 million at 2,538 locations Thursday, bringing the total to $6 million since Wednesday.
Directed by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, the film follows the duo as they get sucked into a dangerous modern game of truth or dare.
Matt Damon’s take on who would win in a fight: Bourne or Bond?:
