Denzel Washington’s assassin thriller “The Equalizer 3” is gunning for the top spot on box office charts over Labor Day weekend. The R-rated film is projected to earn $28 million to $30 million between Friday and Sunday and $33 million to $40 million through the four-day holiday frame.<\/p>\n
As this weekend’s only new nationwide release, “Equalizer 3” shouldn’t have any trouble in knocking down the prior box office champion, Sony’s racing drama “Gran Turismo,” which opened to $17.4 million and looks to add $7 million to $9 million in its sophomore outing.<\/p>\n
In other notable box office milestones, “Barbie” ($1.34 billion) will soon overtake “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” ($1.35 billion) as the highest-grossing worldwide release of the year. And Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” ($778 million) is imminently crossing the $800 million mark globally, a remarkable result for most films, but especially a three-hour historical drama. Viva Barbenheimer!<\/p>\n
“Equalizer 3,” which was co-financed by Sony, TSG and Eagle Pictures, cost $70 million. It’s targeting the softest start of the trilogy; 2014’s “The Equalizer” debuted to $34 million and 2018’s “The Equalizer 2” debuted to $36 million. Each of those films managed to surpass $100 million at the domestic box office and nearly $200 million globally. <\/p>\n
Antoine Fuqua returned to direct the third and final film in the series, which picks up as Washington’s Robert McCall moves to Southern Italy to escape his past as a government assassin. But he later discovers his new friends are under control of a local crime boss, forcing him to take on the Sicilian Mafia to protect his people. “Equalizer 3” has received mixed reviews, though its 64% on Rotten Tomatoes is around the same as its predecessors.<\/p>\n