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It was a “Gru-sum” weekend with DESPICABLE ME 4 ticket sales adding up to $44.7M.

The weekend’s only major studio wide opening, Sony/Apple Studios’ PG-13 rom-com FLY ME TO THE MOON, starring Scarlett Johansson, landed in fifth place with $10M at 3,356 theatres ($2,980), per Comscore. It’s tracking for first choice below norm for all demos.

Hollywood handicappers were looking for an opening of $12M or more. Rotten Tomatoes critics hate it at 67%, but audiences are happier at 88%. MOON reportedly cost $100M to produce.

In MOON, Johansson plays a marketing pro hired to stage a back-up fake Moon landing when the White House says NASA’s mission is too important to fail.

With Universal/Illumination Entertainment’s DM4 still the driving force, the weekend domestic marketplace totaled $127.5M, per Comscore Senior Media Analyst Paul Dergarabedian, down 19.4% from the prior weekend and down 10% vs. this time last year. Comscore’s year to date tally has 2024 at $4.12B, down 16% from $4.92B in 2023. The previous weekend, 2024 was down 17% vs. 2023.

Meanwhile, back at the multiplexes: DM4 owned the boxoffice again as families continued to turn out to see it and, perhaps, also beat the heat. It easily held on to first place with $44.7M at 4,449 theatres ($10,036) and a domestic cume of $211.1M. It’s done $437.8M worldwide on a budget that reportedly was just $100M. DM4’s success boosted the worldwide total for the DM/MINIONS’ franchise to just over $5B, a first for any animated series.

Indie distributor Neon’s opening of its R rated horror thriller LONGLEGS was #2 with $22.6M at 2,510 theatres ($9,004). Pundits expected a $20-25M launch. It’s the top opening in Neon’s seven year history. Neon reportedly acquired LONGLEGS, which stars Nicolas Cage for less than $10M.

It’s tracking below norm for all demos. Rotten Tomatoes critics are applauding at 87%, but audiences are a gloomy 66%.

Disney/Pixar’s INSIDE OUT 2 was #3 in weekend five with $20.7M (-32%) at 3,815 theatres ($5,439). IO2, which reportedly cost $200M to produce, has done $572.6M domestic and $1.35B worldwide

As for next weekend: Universal/WB/Amblin Entertainment’s PG-13 action adventure thriller “TWISTERS,” is the weekend’s only new wide studio opening. It’s blowing into about 4,000 theatres via Universal and is tracking best for first choice with women over 25 (seven points over norm) and next best with men over 25 (four points over norm). RT critics are okay at 79%. Directed by Lee Isaac Chung (MINARI), it stars Daisy Edgar- Jones & Glen Powell.

The 1996 original, TWISTER, from WB/Universal/Amblin was directed by Jan de Bont on a budget of $92M. It starred Helen Hunt & Bill Paxton and did $241.8M domestic via WB and $494.6M worldwide.