Paramount’s “The Lost City” starring Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum in a latter-day “Romancing the Stone” opened with $31 million, dislodging still-strong “The Batman” from #1. The $70 million production continues Paramount’s 10-month string of successful openings of mid- to lower-budget releases that prosper in theaters, most with a window of 45 days or longer. “The Lost City” is also the first COVID film to open at this level that was propelled by both females (61 percent) and older (about half over 35) viewers. That’s no small deal. It also means Channing Tatum had two strong films (along with “Dog”) in less than two months. There’s an obvious lesson here that goes to the core of what is missing from so many studio films. Put two attractive actors in a story-driven original film, and audiences will respond.

This also is a return for Bullock after finding success on Netflix, where she ranks with Adam Sandler among the top multi-original titles for the streamer. She has indicated she may be taking a break. If so, that’s a loss for theaters. The even more expensive “RRR” (Sarigama), an Indian historical epic, placed third with $9.8 million. Presented as an event release with its three-hour length and intermission, tickets cost as much as $25. It won’t be a domestic record for a subcontinental film (director S.S. Rajamouli’s “Baahubali 2” opened to $10.8 million in 2017), but it’s an impressive showing — especially with a limited 1,159 theater run. Add in a strong 10-theater, three-city opening for Daniels’ “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24) of just over $500,000 — the best since “Licorice Pizza” in four theaters last November. It shows another case of audiences responding to something new and different, with Michelle Yeoh as an immigrant interacting with alternative lives she might have led. This included some IMAX screens (it will have more for single-day showings on Wednesday), with big-city expansion this Friday and wide on April 8. The total for the weekend came to $83 million, the same as last week. That’s 54 percent of the equivalent date in 2019, when “Us” opened to $91 million. Our four-week rolling comparison remains consistent with business at 74 percent of its level then. “The Batman” was hardly a slouch, with only a 44 percent drop for $20.5 million, now at $332 million domestic. That is more than $100 million better than any post-2019 release other than “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” The latter has passed $800 million domestic, with Tom Holland again joining Channing Tatum with two films in the top 10. Japanese anime “Jujutsu Kaisen 0” (Crunchyroll) dropped 75 percent its second weekend, still good enough for #4. “X” (A24) had a decent hold, down 48 percent from its modest opening last week. All other longer-run titles dropped less than half.

On this Oscar weekend, it is unprecedented how little presence nominees have. The highest gross among nominees is “Licorice Pizza” (United Artists), #19 overall, only about $154,000. The ceremony‘a late date, combined with all having home availability, contributes. Two year ago, top nominees grossed $17 million at the time of the awards. This year? Under $400,000. (Multiple titles are doing well on VOD). “Mothering Sunday” (Sony Pictures Classics) was the other reported limited opener. The period English romance opened to only $10,000 in five New York/Los Angeles theaters. Next weekend has “Morbius” (Sony), the “Spider-Man” universe offshoot. It has had limited advance word, but it appears headed to the best opening of the year after “The Batman.” DVV Entertainment The Top 10

  1. The Lost City (Paramount) NEW – Cinemascore: B+; Metacritic: 60; Est. budget: $70 million $31,000,000 in 4,253 theaters; PTA (per theater average): $7,289; Cumulative: $31,000000
  2. The Batman (Warner Bros.) Week 4; Last weekend #1 $20,500,000 (-44%) in 3,967 (-335) theaters; PTA: $; Cumulative: $331,951,000
  3. RRR (Sarigama) NEW – Est. budget: $72 million $9,500,000 in 1159 theaters; PTA: $7,917; Cumulative: $9,600,000
  4. Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (Crunchyroll) Week 2; Last weekend #2 $4,575,000 (-75%) in 2,400 (+103) theaters; PTA: $1,892; Cumulative: $27,719,000
  5. Uncharted (Sony) Week 6; Last weekend #3 $5,000,000 (-36%) in 3,416 (-284) theaters; PTA: $3,416,000; Cumulative: $133,551,000 6. X (A24) Week 2; Last weekend #4 $2,230,000 (-48%) in 2,920 (+55) theaters; PTA: $764; Cumulative: $8,298,000
  6. Dog (United Artists) Week 6; Last weekend #5;  also on PVOD $2,108,000 (-47%) in 2,839 (-468) theaters; PTA: $743; Cumulative: $57,875,000
  7. Spider-Man: No Way Home (Sony) Week 15; Last weekend #6; also on PVOD $2,000000 (-36%) in 2,003 (-582) theaters; PTA: $999; Cumulative: $800,588,000
  8. Sing 2 (Universal) Week 14; Last weekend #10; also on PVOD $1,280,000 (-12%) in 2,626 (+788) theaters; PTA: $487; Cumulative: $160,257,000
  9. Infinite Storm (Bleecker Street) NEW – Metacritic: 56 $751,296 in 1,525 theaters; PTA: $493; Cumulative: $751,296   Additional specialized/limited/independent releases  Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24) NEW – Metacritic: 81; Festivals include: South by Southwest $509,659 in 10 theaters; PTA: $50,966 Mothering Sunday (Sony Pictures Classics) NEW – Metacritic: 63; Festivals include: Cannes, Toronto 2021 $10,706 in 5 theaters; PTA: $2,141 The Outfit (Focus) Week 2 $560,000 in 1,328 (+4) theaters; PTA: $422; Cumulative: $2,733,000 Alice (Roadside Attractions) Week 2 $67,750 in 119 (-51) theaters; PTA: $569; Cumulative: $313,640

The Automat (Slice of Pie) –  Week 6 $12,384 in 8 (-1) theaters; Cumulative: $97,916 The Worst Person in the World (Neon) – Week 8; also on PVOD $85,000 in 216 (+77) theaters;  Cumulative: $2,914,000 Parallel Mothers (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 14; also on PVOD $63,618 in 219 (+176) theaters; Cumulative: $2,219,000 Nightmare Alley (Searchlight) Week 14; also streaming on HBO Max and Hulu $18,000 in 575 (+225) theaters; Cumulative: $11,333,000 Drive My Car (Janus) Week 15; also on HBO Max $56,683 in 58 (-16) theaters; Cumulative: $2,232,000 Licorice Pizza (United Artists) Week 16; also on PVOD $153,920 in 462 (-45) theaters; Cumulative: $17,249,000 Belfast (Focus) Week 20; also on VOD $85,000 in 696 (no change) theaters; Cumulative: $9,200,240 Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.