Rotten Tomatoes Proves It Knows Movies: ‘The Martian’ Number One With $55 Million This Weekend
Rotten Tomatoes certified The Martian as fresh, with a 94% rating (as of 7 p.m. Eastern Time on October 4). Well, it did not take long for the science fiction film to speed to the top of the movie rankings and prove Rotten Tomatoes knows movies, at least according to this one rating.
According to USA Today, The Martian was the United States’ number one film in its debut weekend, raking in $55 million in box office sales.
Last week’s number one movie was bumped to second place by Matt Damon’s The Martian. But Hotel Transylvania 2 is still making waves in theaters just in time for the Halloween season.
So why was Rotten Tomatoes able to call The Martian, predicting the nation’s number one movie of the weekend? Take a look at the description of the film on the Rotten Tomatoes site.
“Martian not only won over film critics, it also scored big with paying audiences too. The A grade from CinemaScore indicates great word-of-mouth ahead. Gravity two years ago enjoyed a prolonged run breaking $250 million that year before adding more later from a re-release during Oscar season. Competition will not be very fierce next weekend so aMartian not only won over film critics, it also scored big with paying audiences too. The A grade from CinemaScore indicates great word-of-mouth ahead. Gravity two years ago enjoyed a prolonged run breaking $250 million that year before adding more later from a re-release during Oscar season. Competition will not be very fierce next weekend so a solid sophomore frame should be on the horizon as it races to the century mark.”
Rotten Tomatoes went on to explain the reason for the success of “The Martian.”
“Studio research showed that the audience was 56 percent male and 72 percent over 25,” Rotten Tomatoes writer Gitesh Pandya wrote. “The Martian scored with 3D as the format represented 45 percent of the box office which is impressive by today’s standards. IMAX screens were booked up by The Walk but other premium large format screens contributed 11 percent of the take with the studio reporting they ran at near-capacity levels.”
With the movie having done so well in the United States, expectations must be big overseas as the film launches in more countries next week, according to Rotten Tomatoes.
USA Today said the last big science fiction drama to hit the big screen, Sandra Bullock’s Gravity, opened in the United States with $55.8 million during its opening weekend. While Matt Damon’s movie did not hit those numbers, it shows that the star can rise to the level of other A-list stars like Bullock.
As for Rotten Tomatoes, what did the site have to say about the movie it ranked as “94% fresh”?
“The pundits say the Certified Fresh The Martian is visually stunning, scientifically credible, and immensely likable, thanks in large part to Damon’s funny, touching performance,” the site said.
The other movies to rank in the top ten this weekend include (according to Deadline) are: 1.) The Martian, 2.) Hotel Transylvania 2, 3.) Sicario, 4.) The Intern, 5.) Maze Runner: Scorch Trials, 6.) Black Mass, 7.) Everest, 8.) The Visit, 9.) War Room, and 10.) The Perfect Guy.
Did you catch the Rotten Tomatoes fresh movie pick? What did you think of The Martian? Or do you think some of the other top ten movies of the weekend should have beat out Matt Damon’s latest hit? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below.
[Feature image via Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images]
