Box Office: ‘The Invisible Man’ Emerges with Strong $23 Million Opening

Dave McNary
·3 min read

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Elisabeth Moss’s “The Invisible Man” is dominating North American moviegoing and should scare up about $23 million at 3,610 locations, early estimates showed Friday.

The third weekend of Paramount’s family film “Sonic the Hedgehog” and the sophomore frame of Disney-20th Century’s “Call of the Wild” are in a race for second in the $13 million to $15 million range. “Sonic,” playing at 4,177 sites, will wind up the weekend with more than $125 million in its first 17 days.

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The updated forecast comes after Universal-Blumhouse’s “The Invisible Man” took in a solid $1.7 million Thursday night previews. “The Invisible Man” had been expected to earn north of $20 million this weekend with some independent box office tracking services estimate ticket sales could wind up closer to $30 million since word of mouth has been strong.

“The Invisible Man,” which carries a modest $7 million budget, is written and direct by Leigh Whannell, the co-creator of the “Saw” franchise. The film is a modern-day take on the 1933 Claude Rains film, based on H. G. Wells’ novel. Moss stars as a woman who becomes convinced she’s being hunted by her violent — and now-invisible — ex-husband, played by Oliver Jackson-Cohen. Everyone around her believes she’s losing her mind because her ex-husband, an expert in optics technology, has managed to persuade the world that he’s committed suicide.

The film also stars Aldis Hodge, Storm Reid and Harriet Dyer. Critics have praised “The Invisible Man,” leading to a 92% score on Rotten Tomatoes, a particularly strong reception for a horror film.

The performance of “The Invisible Man” highlights the popularity of Moss, best known for her roles on “Mad Men” and “The Handmaid’s Tale.” She won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her portrayal of June Osborne in “The Handmaid’s Tale.”

“The Invisible Man” is the latest success to emerge from Blumhouse’s low-cost model, which has delivered multiple successful titles in the horror-thriller space, including “Get Out,” “Halloween,” “Split,” “Glass” and the “Paranormal Activity” franchise.

Three titles were in a battle for fourth place in the $4 million range — Sony Pictures TV/Funimation’s launch of anime movie “My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising” at 1,260 locations; Sony’s seventh weekend of “Bad Boys for Life” at 2,708 sites; and Warner Bros.’ fourth frame of “Birds of Prey.”

“Bad Boys for Life,” which has kept the overall box office healthy in 2020, will wind up the weekend with a $197 million North American total.

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