Think R-rated movies are box office poison? Not if Kingsman: The Secret Service and Fifty Shades Of Grey are anything to go by...
NewsWhatever you thought of either film, the past weekend in the U.S. was a big one for Fifty Shades Of Greyand Kingsman: The Secret Service. Both earned big opening weekends in America, the success of one of which was more expected than the other.
As expected, Fifty Shades Of Greyproved box office gold over the Valentine's Day weekend. In the U.S. alone it earned $81.6m at the box office, in spite of being, er, 'not liked' by movie critics. Add on the $158m it's made outside of America, and the $40m Fifty Shades Of Grey adaptation stands already at $239m.
Kingsman: The Secret Service, meanwhile, proved a real surprise. It had been expected to open in America somewhere around the $20m mark. It actually nabbed $35.6m in its first weekend there. Add in what it's made elsewhere, and Matthew Vaughn's comic book adaptation is at $79m worldwide and counting.
Regular readers will know that we don't often do box office stories, but in this case, the success of both of these films may just have ramifications. For both have proven successful in spite of having an R rating. Add in that American Snipercrossed the $300m mark in the U.S. this past weekend, and that too has an R attached to it, and it feels as though there's some sizeable evidence for movie executives who keep pushing films towards the more commercially lucrative PG-13 rating. We remember when Watchmenwas released, and how its failure to fully catch fire at the box office was put down to its R-rating. That reasoning seems a little weak now.
[related artice - Kingsman: The Secret Service & 17 Spy Movie Influences]
Two consequences of Kingsman's success in particular, then. Firstly, Matthew Vaughn may now press ahead with a sequel. Secondly, it might just persuade Fox to let Deadpoolhave an R rating too. You never know...
