The U.K. and Ireland box office saw a major shake-up over the weekend as A24’s psychological horror film “Backrooms” opened at No. 1 with £4.2 million ($5.7 million), marking the biggest opening weekend in the distributor’s history in the territory. Disney’s “The Mandalorian and Grogu” slipped to second place in its sophomore weekend with $3.5 million, taking its 10-day total to $15.2 million.
Universal continued to perform strongly, with the biographical musical drama “Michael” holding at No. 3 in its sixth week and adding $2.3 million to reach a U.K. total of $64.7 million. The studio also claimed fourth place with the horror-romance “Obsession,” which earned $2.1 million in its third frame and has now accumulated $9.2 million. Disney’s “The Devil Wears Prada 2” completed the top five in its fifth weekend, bringing in $1.1 million for a cumulative $43.3 million.
Sony’s “The Sheep Detectives” placed sixth in its fourth weekend, adding $957,622 to reach $11.2 million. Black Bear’s new release “Tuner,” starring Leo Woodall and Dustin Hoffman, debuted at No. 7 with $486,660. Universal’s “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” remained resilient in eighth place in its ninth week, adding $298,387 to lift its total to $51.2 million. Lionsgate U.K.’s musical comedy “Power Ballad,” starring Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas, opened at No. 9 with $274,191. Paramount’s supernatural horror title “Passenger” rounded out the top 10 in its second week with $199,478, bringing its cumulative total to $1 million.
Looking ahead, the next theatrical frame is led by Sony Pictures’ live-action fantasy adventure “Masters Of The Universe,” directed by Travis Knight and starring Nicholas Galitzine, Camila Mendes, Jared Leto and Idris Elba. The film is set to launch in more than 300 locations on Wednesday, June 3. Other new releases arriving on Friday, June 5, include Paramount’s revival of the parody franchise “Scary Movie,” Peter Glanz’s “Savage House,” which is also opening in over 300 locations and stars Richard E. Grant and Claire Foy, Celyn Jones’s Welsh biopic “Madfabulous” from Icon, and Zee Studios International’s release of Anurag Kashyap’s Toronto title “Bandar.”
The weekend will also feature several repertory and event screenings, including CinemaLive’s “Riverdance 25th Anniversary Show” on Sunday, June 7, along with “Bonnie & Clive” from Miracle Comms and Piece Of Magic Entertainment’s “The Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act.”
