Dark mystery thriller Gone Girl, starring Ben Affleck as a man who finds himself a murder suspect when his wife goes missing, topped the US box office at the weekend with an impressive debut haul of $38m (£23.7m). In the process the adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s bestselling novel secured director David Fincher’s highest opening film ever.
Gone Girl’s bow easily surpassed Fincher’s previous best, the Jodie Foster thriller Panic Room, which opened to $30.1m in 2002. Starring Affleck as Nick Dunne and Britain’s Rosamund Pike as missing wife Amy, with Neil Patrick Harris and Emily Ratajkowski in supporting roles, the film has drawn rave reviews from critics.
Fincher’s film narrowly beat another new film, the horror prequel Annabelle, into second place. Centring on a doll possessed by a demonic spirit which was first introduced in the critically acclaimed 2013 chiller The Conjuring, John R Leonetti’s supernatural tale opened with a remarkable $37.2m, having been made for just $6.5m. With all figures still just estimates, it could yet emerge as the weekend’s top film when final figures emerge on Monday.
Last week’s top film, the Denzel Washington vigilante action movie The Equalizer, made third spot this time around with another $18m in its second week for a total of $64.5m. The top five was rounded out by animated fantasy The Boxtrolls, with another $12.4m in its second week for a haul of $32.5m, and futuristic drama The Maze Runner, with $12m in its third week for a total of $73.9m.
The only other new film to hit the top 10 this week was the apocalyptic thriller Left Behind from director Vic Armstrong. Starring Nicolas Cage as an airline pilot struggling to cope with the aftermath of a cataclysmic event, the film took $6.9m in sixth place.
US box office top 10 October 3-5
1. Gone Girl $38m
2. Annabelle $37.2m
3. The Equalizer $19m Total: $64.5m
4. The Boxtrolls $12.42m Total: $32.54m
5. The Maze Runner $12m Total: $73.92m
6. Left Behind $6.85m
7. This is Where I Leave You $4m Total: $29m
8. Dolphin Tale 2 $3.53m Total: $37.97m
9. Guardians of the Galaxy $3.03m Total: $323.36m
10. No Good Deed $2.5m Total: $50.16m
