New Bob Marley movie gets big box office love as Madame Web tanks

Los Angeles, California - Paramount's new musical biopic Bob Marley: One Love enjoyed the adoration of North American moviegoers this weekend, surprisingly beating out Madame Web and topping the box office with estimated earnings of $27.7 million, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported.

Bob Marley: One Love takes a look at the life of legendary reggae musician Bob Marley.
Bob Marley: One Love takes a look at the life of legendary reggae musician Bob Marley.  © IMAGO/Landmark Media

"This is an excellent opening for a musical biography," analyst David A. Gross said, adding that the movie was doing much better with audiences than with critics.

British actor Kingsley Ben-Adir, who plays the iconic reggae singer in the story of his rapid rise and too-soon death, previously drew attention for his portrayal of Malcolm X in One Night in Miami.

Lashana Lynch plays Rita Marley, and son Ziggy Marley is one of the film's producers.

Jason Kelce smashes fan's phone after Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce get called homophobic slur
Taylor Swift Jason Kelce smashes fan's phone after Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce get called homophobic slur

Another new release, Sony/Marvel superhero thriller Madame Web, placed second for the Friday-through-Sunday period, at $15.2 million.

Analysts called that a disappointing opening, given the film's $80 million production cost and opening mid-week. And its meager 13% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes is the lowest average score on the review site of any superhero film in almost a decade.

Gone are the days, said Gross, of Franchise Entertainment Research, when "you could pluck a character out of a popular superhero movie and make a hit film about them."

Dakota Johnson plays the titular Madame Web – a paramedic with psychic talents – in this fourth film in Sony's Spider-Man Universe series.

What were the top movies at the box office this week?

Superhero pic Madame Web, starring Dakota Johnson (l.) and Sydney Sweeney, had a disappointing opening weekend at the box office.
Superhero pic Madame Web, starring Dakota Johnson (l.) and Sydney Sweeney, had a disappointing opening weekend at the box office.  © imago/Everett Collection

Dropping to third from last weekend's top spot was Universal's spy thriller Argylle, at $4.7 million. It has now taken in $36.4 million domestically – "tragic" figures for a film with a $200 million budget, according to Variety.

In fourth, flying steady in its fifth weekend out, was Universal's family-friendly animation Migration, at $3.8 million.

And in fifth was another chapter of Fathom Events' story of the life of Jesus Christ, The Chosen: S4, EP 4-6. It earned $3.4 million.

Ben Affleck makes rare comment about Jennifer Lopez amid their divorce
Jennifer Lopez Ben Affleck makes rare comment about Jennifer Lopez amid their divorce

Rounding out the top 10 were:

  • Wonka ($3.4 million)
  • The Beekeeper ($3.3 million)
  • Anyone But You ($2.4 million)
  • Lisa Frankenstein ($2 million)
  • Land of Bad ($1.8 million)

Warner Bros.' musical Wonka finally dropped out of the top five in its 10th week out, but did manage to hit the $600 million mark globally.

Cover photo: IMAGO/Landmark Media

More on Movies: