“Expendables 4” drops to $8 million in theatrical release

Lionsgate/Millennium’s “Expend4bles” isn’t doing much to halt the overall revenue slump that the box office has seen over the last two weeks, as the action sequel has an opening of $8 million after a year in 3,518 theaters in the lowest franchise format will gross $3.2 million on opening day.

Pre-release projections had the film grossing around $15 million this weekend, similar to Expendables 3 in 2014. It’s possible that lead actor Sylvester Stallone or the rest of the cast of this ensemble action film won’t there to promote the film due to the SAG-AFTRA strike contributed to the lower numbers.

But strike or not, “Expend4bles” isn’t very well received. The film received a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 16% from critics, while audiences gave the film a B- grade at CinemaScore, the lowest for the series.

“Expend4bles” may not even take the top spot at the box office, as Warner Bros./New Line’s “The Nun II” is within striking distance of retaining the top spot for a third weekend due to its low opening. According to industry estimates, Nun II grossed $7.9 million in its third weekend, bringing its domestic total to $68.7 million.

Total earnings this weekend are expected to reach just $50 million, down 20% from last weekend’s meager $62.8 million and only slightly better than the year’s low of $47.8 million set on Super Bowl weekend was recorded.

Starting next weekend, ticket sales in theaters are expected to pick up again thanks to a host of new releases, including Saw Colombia’s “dumb money.”