'Furiosa' and 'Garfield' battle for No. 1 spot as box office records lowest Memorial Day opening in 29 years

Top line

“Garfield: The Movie” and “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” were still battling for the top spot at the box office in the middle of the holiday weekend, vying for the title of worst Memorial Day weekend opening in nearly 30 years – which goes to the respective film that comes out on top by Monday.

Key data

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Contra

“Reign of the Planet of the Apes” had perfectly acceptable ratings when it opened earlier this month (it grossed $58.5 million, just above the $56.5 million forecast), and there are several other summer films that are expected to help the box office bounce back. Disney's animated film “Inside Out 2” is expected to make as much as $85 million in its opening weekend set for next month, which would be a significant improvement over Disney's recent lackluster releases like “Wish” and “Elemental,” and “Deadpool & Wolverine” could be a huge hit for the Marvel Cinematic Universe when it hits theaters in late July.

Big number

89%. That's the critics' rating of “Furiosa” with Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth on Rotten Tomatoes. “Garfield: The Movie,” in which Chris Pratt plays the voice of the famous cat, has a critics' rating of 37%.

tangent

Much of the press surrounding Furiosa has focused on Taylor-Joy's experience filming, which she has spoken about at length. Taylor-Joy revealed that she only has 30 lines of dialogue in the entire film, and told The New York Times that she spent months on set without speaking a single line. She has described herself as a “really strong advocate of female anger” and said she fought with director George Miller to give her character the opportunity to express her anger, saying, in reference to a scene in the film, “I fought for that scream for three months.”

Key quote

“I have never been so lonely as I was while making this film,” Taylor-Joy told the Times.

Further information

Deadline“Garfield” and “Furiosa” are neck and neck on Memorial Day weekend – Update from Sunday morning
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