Disney’s box office dominance in 2016 has left scant space for newcomers in the family film market. The studio’s mostly animated The Jungle Book three-peated as the top American film, grossing an estimated $42.4 million and lifting its domestic total to $252.1 million. With international totals added, Jungle Book has now earned $684.8 million.
More surprising, Zootopia, in its ninth weekend in U.S. theaters, managed to outearn the debut of Gramercy Pictures’ Ratchet & Clank, the $20 million-budgeted video game adaptation made in Canada and China. Weekend estimates suggest that Zootopia will finish in sixth place with $5m, while Ratchet & Clank will end up in seventh with $4.8m.
Zootopia had a per-theater average of $2,013 from 2,487 theates vs. Ratchet & Clank’s $1,668 average from 2,891 theaters. The Disney pic’s domestic gross is now $323.5m. If Ratchet & Clank follows the trajectory of second-tier theatrical features like Norm of the North ($6.8m debut, $17m total) and Shaun the Sheep Movie ($4m debut, $19.4m total), it should end up with between $13-20m at the box office.
