(Bloomberg) –“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” led the box office again — marking the final weekend of a great year for Walt Disney Co., the film’s owner, but a mediocre 2019 for pretty much everyone else.
“The Rise of Skywalker” brought in $72 million this weekend in U.S. and Canadian theaters, researcher Comscore Inc. estimated Sunday, easily outdrawing two new movies — Sony Corp.‘s “Little Women” and “Spies in Disguise,” from Disney’s Fox studio. Analysts had expected as much as $100 million for the “Star Wars” feature. The gross was down 59% from last week, Comscore said.
With the exception of Disney, which set global records with its slate of live-action and animated movies, the year was lackluster for most of Hollywood’s film companies. The industry headed into the weekend with 2019 ticket sales in the U.S. down 4.6% from a year ago and most observers expecting 2020 to be a challenge as well.
Two new films opened in wide release this weekend. “Little Women,” a new adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s tale of four sisters coming of age in the aftermath of the Civil War, opened in third place with sales of $16.5 million. Box Office Pro was projecting $18 million.
“Spies in Disguise,” an animated film featuring the voices of Rachel Brosnahan, Will Smith and Reba McEntire, took in $13.2 million to land in fifth place. Box Office Mojo was forecasting $11 million.
A24’s “Uncut Gems,” starring Adam Sandler as a jewelry dealer in New York’s Diamond District, expanded to more theaters and delivered $9.6 million in sales to land in seventh place. That fell in line with forecasts of $8.5 million to $10 million this weekend.
