“Blade Runner 2049” has opened with a solid $4 million at the North American box office on Thursday night.
The preview number for the sequel, starring Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford, was 60% above that of 2015’s “The Martian.” The film earned $800,000 from Imax showings.
“Blade Runner 2049” will expand to 4,058 sites on Friday. It’s expected to gross between $45 million and $50 million this weekend. That’s similar to 2015’s “Mad Max: Fury Road,” which debuted to $45 million on its way to $154 million domestically.
Fox’s survival drama “The Mountain Between Us,” starring Idris Elba and Kate Winslet, took in $400,000 at 2,535 sites during previews.
Warner Bros. is handling domestic distribution on “Blade Runner 2049” through its output deal with Alcon Entertainment. The film, directed by Denis Villeneuve, carries a $150 million price tag and is set in a dystopian Los Angeles in 2049. Sony is handling international distribution with about 60% of markets opening this weekend.
The original “Blade Runner,” directed by Ridley Scott and starring Ford, was not a box office success when it launched to $32.9 million in 1982. The neo-noir film, centered on Ford’s Rick Deckard tracking down escaped replicants, grew in stature over the years. In 1993, “Blade Runner” was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.
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