For the past two weeks, The LEGO Batman Movie has reigned atop the domestic box office in a fashion akin to how the Dark Knight himself watches over Gotham City. Despite noble challenges from high-profile films like Fifty Shades Darker, John Wick: Chapter 2, and The Great Wall, Warner Bros.’ blocky version of Batman has so far bested all comers. However, that looks like it might be set to change this weekend, with the arrival of Jordan Peele’s racially-charged horror flick Get Out.

The directorial debut of the former Key & Peele star, Get Out stars Daniel Kaluuya as Chris, a young black man who heads off with his white girlfriend Rose (Allison Williams) to meet her parents (Bradley Whitford and Catherine Keener) at their rural family estate. Rose’s parents waste no time in behaving quite strangely, and treating Chris in ways that make him visibly uncomfortable. At first, he chalks it up to them being unsure of how to react to their daughter’s new interracial relationship, but before long, it becomes clear that something far worse is really going on.

Despite featuring potentially controversial subject matter, Get Out looks poised to possibly knock LEGO Batman off of its perch at the top of the domestic box office. According to The Wrap, Get Out is significantly outpacing LEGO Batman in Fandango ticket sales for this weekend, and according to a Fandango survey, 92 percent of moviegoers are “excited to see a thriller with provocative social commentary.” This suggests that if anything, Get Out’s race-focused plot might actually end up working in its favor financially.

For its part, distributor Universal Pictures is downplaying Get Out’s potential box office take, suggesting a total somewhere between $15 and $19 million. This would already make Get Out a decent-sized success, as the film’s budget was a quite conservative - for Hollywood - $4.5 million. However, independent box office trackers are predicting a total weekend take of around $24 million, which would make Get Out a full-fledged hit for Universal and producer Blumhouse Productions. While that number might not be quite high enough to top LEGO Batman, it will likely at least take the #2 spot away from Fifty Shades Darker.

Get Out heads into its Friday theatrical debut atop a wave of critical praise, of the likes rarely seen by a horror film. With over 70 reviews now in, Get Out still currently holds a very rare 100 percent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Even acclaimed films that start off at 100 percent have usually taken a few hits by the time that many reviews have come in. The fact that Get Out hasn’t speaks volumes. If Get Out’s critical success indeed translates into box office gold, it’ll be the second cause for celebration for Blumhouse so far this year, after M. Night Shyamalan’s Split.

Source: The Wrap

  • Get Out Release Date: 2017-02-24