Movie Money: Episode 17 (May 22, 2017)

This week at the box office was a myriad of almosts. Three newcomers graced the silver screen this week as 'Diary of Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul', 'Everything, Everything' and of course, the big release this week, 'Alien Covenant'. Unfortunately, only two of those new releases would break through the top 5, as Wimpy Kid just missed the mark by performing a $26,000 less than 'King Arthur: Legend of the Sword', which continues to do miserable numbers, as its weekend gross of  $7.15m brought its worldwide total to a mere $94.5m. Like King Arthur, it's unlikely that Greg Heffley and the family will be back anytime soon, as their 3rd outing failed to meet even half of its $22 million budget, grossing a mere $7.12m on its opening weekend.

At least 'Everything, Everything' fared better, surpassing its budget of $10m, earning $12m. The romantic teen drama will no doubt garner a nice slice of the summer movie audiences, as it provides a less intense counter to the explosions and action of your typical blockbuster. Continuing to dominate not only the galaxy but also the box office, 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2' has earned $300m domestically this weekend, and $732m worldwide, as their weekend take was $34.6m. It is well on its way to surpassing its predecessor, which finished its run with a worldwide total of $773.3m.

The 'Guardians' lost the battle to one Alien this week, as 'Alien Covenant' just squeezed by with a $36.6m weekend. The Ridley Scott's return to the Alien franchise underperformed this weekend, as it made nearly $20m less than its direct predecessor 'Prometheus'. Still, the sci-fi horror picture will no doubt bring home enough bacon for sequels to be made into oblivion, as the worldwide total currently stands at $117m, blasting past its $97m budget.

That's all for the box office this week. Next week sees the double whammy of 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides', as well as 'Baywatch'. 'Pirates' has the franchise recognition to surely blast it to #1, but 'Baywatch' has Dwayne Johnson, which easily makes it a contender for Johnny Depp and his pirate antics.

For the audio discussion on the weekend box office, here's the episode this week: