Tag: Mckenna Grace

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 Box Office Prediction

Arriving in theaters exclusively two years after its predecessor did a simultaneous release on Peacock and in multiplexes, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is out December 5th. Based on the Scott Cawton created video game series, the horror sequel sees Emma Tammi back directing. Returning cast members include Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, and Matthew Lillard. Newcomers to the mix are Skeet Ulrich, Wayne Knight, Mckenna Grace, and Teo Briones.

In October 2023, Freddy’s greatly exceeded expectations with a fab $80 million out of the gate despite it being available at home for paying customers. The front loaded debut yielded a $137 million overall domestic haul. That detail could be key as part 2 could struggle. Fans of the games were deeply divided about whether the original did its source material justice. They came out right away to see it but word-of-mouth fizzled and some casual moviegoers steered clear. Many may not turn up for a second reservation.

Estimates have this only earning half of what part 1 achieved. This is a bit reminiscent of the M3GAN franchise where the 2022 pic landed a potent and unanticipated $30 million debut and this year’s sequel petered out with only $10 million. I’ll say Freddy’s 2 only gets mid to maybe high 30s.

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 opening weekend prediction: $36.5 million

For my Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution prediction, click here:

Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution Box Office Prediction

Regretting You Box Office Prediction

The Fault in Our Stars director Josh Boone is back in the romantic drama genre with Regretting You on October 24th. Adapting Colleen Hoover’s 2019 novel, the Paramount release stars Allison Williams, Mckenna Grace, Dave Franco, Mason Thames, Willa Fitzgerald, Scott Eastwood, and Clancy Brown.

The studio is hoping that Hoover’s readers come out in droves like they did last year with It Ends with Us. That Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni team-up (and it’s safe to say the last one) began with a sizzling $50 million. Regretting isn’t expected to get anywhere near that. If this reached $20 million out of the gate, that would be a massive win.

Tracking has it in the low to mid teens and that sounds right.

Regretting You opening weekend prediction: $14 million

For my Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere prediction, click here:

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere Box Office Prediction

For my Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc prediction, click here:

Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc Box Office Prediction

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Review

Unlike 2016’s ballyhooed female Ghostbusters reboot or 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife (which served as a sequel to the first two), Frozen Empire doesn’t need to burden itself with spending time introducing new characters to mix with the oldies and three-year-old newbies. The fifth franchise feature, unlike Afterlife, doesn’t have to employ a long windup before it nourishes our nostalgic hankerings. Unfortunately it still does yet I found it slightly more fulfilling than its two predecessors. That’s not sizzling praise, but I wasn’t totally cold to its charms and it’s the fresher characters that often shine.

You may recall that Afterlife introduced us to Egon Spengler’s brood that he abandoned for what turned out to be noble reasons. Granddaughter Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) is Harold Ramis’s spitting image in look, spirit, and overall nerdiness. She’s moved from Oklahoma to NYC along with mom (Carrie Coon), stepdad (Paul Rudd), and brother (Finn Wolfhard) and they’ve set up shop in that iconic firehouse where their patriarch slid down the pole with the OG ‘Busters. They are carrying on the family tradition and, yes, it makes them feel good until Mayor Walter Peck (William Atherton, returning after four decades after a memorable role in the original) sidelines Phoebe. Ray (Dan Aykroyd) and Winston (Ernie Hudson) and Janine (Annie Potts, finally getting to put on a uniform) are still around as is Venkman (Bill Murray)… sort of. One gets the impression that Murray crashes the party just long enough for the paycheck and perhaps a week on set. He still fits in a drolly satisfying one-liner or two as only he can.

There’s a lot of characters to keep up with and the script from director Gil Kenan and Jason Reitman develops juggle problems. Rudd and Coon, whose romance was a focal point three years ago, are given the short shrift. Wolfhard and Celeste O’Connor (who hit it off in Oklahoma as well) fare even worse. Same goes for Phoebe’s buddy Podcast (Logan Kim).

The most promising additions are the brand new ones that factor into the plot. Lazy Nadeem (Kumail Nanjiani) sells his dead grandma’s shiny orb to Ray for a quick few bucks. It turns out to be a device that could start a new ice age while also summoning previously captured spirits back to the Big Apple. Nanjiani’s comedic spirits are a high point. Patton Oswalt’s quick work as a library employee in the New York Public Library is one of the better scenes. We have Emily Alyn Lind as a long departed apparition trying to reunite with her loved ones. In the meantime, she plays chess with Phoebe with a slight romantic undertone. Some of this material is decent enough that I wondered whether the wistful remembrances of what entertained us from 1984 is needed anymore.

Saying that Empire is the best sequel in the series is really not saying much. A more appropriate way to say it might be that it’s the least disappointing. Many of the same drawbacks of what came between 1984 and 2024 are present. I did, however, find it funnier than the schmaltzy Afterlife. Maybe there’s a little life left in this franchise after all. Frozen Empire shows that sporadically.

**1/2 (out of four)

Oscar Predictions – Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire attempts to match its 2021 predecessor’s grosses when it debuts this weekend. Chances are that it will also match its Oscar prospects. The fifth feature in the franchise that began in 1984, Gil Kenan directs with Jason Reitman coproducing and cowriting. Stars from Afterlife three years back return including Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Celeste O’Connor, and Logan Kim. Cast members from 40 years ago are in attendance – Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and William Atherton. Kumail Nanjiani and Patton Oswalt additionally join the bustin’.

Critical reaction today gives it the coldest Rotten Tomatoes score of all Ghostbusters at 47%. The original nabbed 95% while its 1989 sequel only managed 55%. 2016’s reboot was rated 74% while Afterlife received 64%.

The Academy’s history with this series is limited to part 1. Ray Parker Jr.’s inescapable theme song was up for Best Song (losing to Stevie Wonder’s “I Just Called to Say I Love You” from The Woman in Red) and the Visual Effects were in contention (coming up short to Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom). Three ceremonies ago, Afterlife was shortlisted for VE but didn’t make the final five cut. The special effects (which some reviewers are criticizing) are highly unlikely to catch the attention of voters this time around. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Box Office Prediction

Arriving almost 40 years after the classic original, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire looks to heat up multiplexes on March 22nd. The fifth feature in the franchise serves as a sequel to 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife with Gil Kenan taking over directorial duties from Jason Reitman (the pair cowrote the script together). Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Celeste O’Connor, and Logan Kim reprise their roles alongside OG cast members Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and William Atherton. Newcomers to the series include Kumail Nanjiani and Patton Oswalt.

Originally slated for December of last year, Empire looks to exceed or match the grosses of Afterlife. Nearly two and a half years ago, it started off with $44 million and eventual domestic earnings of $129 million. That is right on pace with 2016’s ballyhooed reboot with Melissa McCarthy and Kristin Wiig which premiered to $46 million and $128 million overall.

2021’s version proved the franchise still has some juice. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if this earns slightly less due to Afterlife‘s middling critical reception and audience reaction that wasn’t totally over the moon. Low 40s sounds about right.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire opening weekend prediction: $42.7 million

For my Immaculate prediction, click here:

Immaculate Box Office Prediction

Oscar Predictions – PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie

PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie arrives in theaters tomorrow and it’s the second animated feature based on the popular Nickelodeon series. Cal Brunker returns to direct with voice cast actors including Mckenna Grace, Taraji P. Henson, Kim Kardashian, James Marsden, and Kristen Bell.

Initial reviews are encouraging with an 88% Rotten Tomatoes rating. That score may go down, but it’s currently higher than the 80% earned by its 2021 predecessor. However, I don’t really see this contending for Best Animated Feature. The first PAW didn’t and there’s other sequels or reboots that could stand a better shot. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, for example, boasts a 96% RT meter. Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget has yet to drop and it could emerge as a hopeful. With Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, The Boy and the Heron, and Elemental probably already in and Wish on deck, don’t count on these dogs to make it. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…

PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie Box Office Prediction

Paramount is hoping the kiddos are eager for a second cinematic helping of canine comedy as PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie hits theaters on September 29th. The animated sequel, based on a Canadian TV series that made its way stateside via Nickelodeon, has Cal Brunker returning to direct. The voice cast includes Mckenna Grace, Taraji P. Henson, Marsai Martin, Christian Convery, Kim Kardashian and her children North West and Saint West, James Marsden, Kristin Bell, and Finn Lee-Epp.

PAW Patrol: The Movie arrived in theaters in August of 2021 during COVID challenges. It opened to a so-so $13 million and ended up taking in $40 million domestically. Without the barriers that its predecessor faced, this may end up earning about the same amount out of the gate and maybe a little more. Not mighty, but not a box office dog either.

PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie opening weekend prediction: $16.3 million

For my The Creator prediction, click here:

The Creator Box Office Prediction

For my Saw X prediction, click here:

Saw X Box Office Prediction

For my Dumb Money prediction, click here:

Dumb Money Box Office Prediction

Ghostbusters: Afterlife Review

The original Ghostbusters, lest we forget, was filled with ribald humor coming from SNL vets that were in the prime of their careers. Overloading the reboot/sequel Afterlife with gooey family drama feels, in many ways, as misplaced as the missteps that 2016’s version took or that 1989’s traditional follow-up was a fairly weak retread of the first. This franchise hasn’t succeeded in their attempts to capitalize on what made 1984’s pic special and that extends to this.

It’s not for a lack of trying as the 2021 iteration goes to extreme lengths to get our nostalgia radars working into overdrive. Jason Reitman takes over directorial duties from his father Ivan, who made the 80s blockbusters. There’s not a piece of attire or Twinkie or demonic marshmallow from 1984 that isn’t placed with the clear purpose of inspiring wild cheers. Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows the name of every nearly four decade old artifact, vehicle or gadget. In this Afterlife, it more often feels forced than welcome.

We shift from the Big Apple to the sleepy town of Summerville, Oklahoma. Egon Spangler, Harold Ramis’s nerdy scientist from the OG ‘Busters, has relocated to a dilapidated farmhouse and cut off contact with his family and former colleagues. His demise in the prologue causes his heirs to inhabit the dusty domicile. This includes down on her luck daughter Callie (Carrie Coon) and her two kids. Since I think it’s now contactually necessary for Stranger Things players to participate in these reboots, Finn Wolfhard is her teenage son Trevor. Mckenna Grace is the real lead as 12-year-old daughter Phoebe, who resembles her granddad in looks and interests. An outcast at school, she bonds with fellow geek Podcast (Logan Kim) and her summer school teacher Mr. Grooberson (Paul Rudd).

Trevor and Phoebe are completely unaware that Egon was a Ghostbuster (we’ll just go with that I suppose). Paranormal activities start revealing his life’s work including Phoebe’s ongoing chess game with an unseen spirit. The iconic car (yay!) is stored on the property. Of course, the late Egon was in Summerville for a reason and it has to do with familiar haunters from ’84 and preventing them from returning.

This all leads to familiar heroic faces eventually turning up (though not with significant screen time). With their limited participation, the question is whether the new and much younger generation of spirit crushers is compelling enough to warrant a feature. I didn’t think so, but there are some positives. Grace’s performance is terrific (while Wolfhard and his budding romance with his bellhop coworker Celeste O’Connor adds little). Rudd’s considerable talents (he takes a liking to Callie) add a bit of fun. The sight of Bill Murray randomly turning up anywhere is good for a smile (though not much more here than reading about how he does so in real life).

However, the tone in general struck me as off. It’s hard not to be touched by its tribute to the late Harold Ramis (a man responsible for so many laughs in landmark comedies of the past). I felt the sentiment because of that and not the absence of Egon. Afterlife seems trapped in the notion that our emotional connections to these characters run deeper than they do. Like many reboots nowadays, the mere presence of something old is meant to provide the requisite entertainment value. It made me feel mostly dispirited.

** (out of four)

Ghostbusters: Afterlife Box Office Prediction

It’s in with the old and in with the new as Ghostbusters: Afterlife debuts in theaters November 19th. This was originally scheduled to haunt multiplexes in the summer of 2020 before numerous COVID delays. Jason Reitman directs and there’s some family legacy involved as dad Ivan made parts I and II in 1984 and 1989. Newcomers to the series include Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Tracy Letts, and Paul Rudd (not to mention Stay Puft Marshmallow Minis according to the trailer). Returnees from the 80s are Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and Sigourney Weaver.

If rebooting this franchise sounds familiar – that’s because it happened five years ago to middling results. The Paul Feig helmed remake led by Melissa McCarthy and Kristin Wiig took in $46 million on its opening weekend but fizzled quickly due to so-so reviews and audience reaction. It also featured the OG Busters making cameos. This new iteration serves as a direct sequel to the first two.

Some estimates have Afterlife beginning at $50 million or above. That’s certainly doable, but I’m not so sure. While it’s obviously a well-known property and the ’84 original is rightly considered a classic, both follow-ups have been letdowns. The 71% Rotten Tomatoes score is OK, but its actually below the 74% that greeted the ballyhooed 2016 pic.

I’m projecting that this makes it to $35-$40 million and doesn’t get to the number we saw just a half decade back.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife opening weekend prediction: $38.1 million

For my King Richard prediction, click here:

King Richard Box Office Prediction

Oscar Predictions – Ghostbusters: Afterlife

The attendees of New York Comic Con were treated to a surprise this weekend with a screening of Ghostbusters: Afterlife. The fourth film in the franchise that famously began in 1984 serves as a direct continuation to the original and its 1989 follow-up. It’s all about family with Jason Reitman as director (his father Ivan made those first two). Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Logan Kim, and Paul Rudd join the bustin’ action with series stalwarts Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and Sigourney Weaver making appearances. Afterlife is finally coming to life after numerous COVID delays with a November 19th stateside release.

Early reviews indicate a long gestating sequel has extreme reverence for its past. Some critics claim it might be a bit too nostalgic, but reaction is overwhelmingly pleasing with a current Rotten Tomatoes score of 91% (based on 11 reviews).

The original classic 37 years ago managed 2 Oscar nominations. They’re what you would expect: Best Original Song for that addictive title track by Ray Parker Jr. and Visual Effects (it lost to Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom). Also as you might expect, Ghostbusters II and the ballyhooed 2016 Paul Feig reboot with Melissa McCarthy and Kristin Wiig achieved zero awards attention. I would anticipate the same for this despite the kudos. Visual Effects is a remote possibility, but there’s a slew of contenders more likely (Dune, The Matrix Resurrections, Eternals to name just some).

My Oscar Prediction posts for the films of 2021 will continue…