‘Death on the Nile’ Tops Box Office Over Slow Super Bowl Weekend

(Bloomberg) -- “Death on the Nile” bumped “Jackass Forever” from the top of the domestic box office over a slow weekend when Americans were more focused on the Super Bowl.

The picture, from Walt Disney Co.'s 20th Century Studios, generated $12.9 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales, according to data from Comscore Inc. That trailed a forecast of $14.5 million from researcher Boxoffice Pro. The movie took in less than half the $28.7 million that its predecessor, 2017's “Murder on the Orient Express,” generated in its opening weekend five years ago. 

“Jackass Forever,” from ViacomCBS Inc.'s Paramount Pictures, fell to second place with $8.1 million in domestic box office receipts in its sophomore weekend. 

Key Insights 

• “Death on the Nile” returns Kenneth Branagh to the role of Agatha Christie's Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. Branagh directed the film, which also features Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Letitia Wright and Russell Brand. About 65% of critics recommended it on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes.
• The film likely appeals to an older audience that has tended to stay away from theaters during the pandemic. “Jackass Forever,” on the other hand, targets a younger audience that may have been distracted this weekend by the build-up to Sunday's Super Bowl.
• Two other pictures made their debuts this week. “Marry Me,” a romantic comedy starring Jennifer Lopez and Owen Wilson from Comcast Corp.'s Universal Pictures, looked to get out ahead of Valentine's Day. “Blacklight” is an action-thriller distributed by independent Briarcliff Entertainment. It stars Liam Neeson.

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