The action-thriller “The Transporter Refueled” drove off with a moderate $365,000 at 2,200 locations on Thursday.
The Thursday night number is similar to that for Relativity’s “3 Days to Kill,” which took in $325,000 in previews on its way to an opening weekend of $12.2 million last year.
The EuropaCorp release, the fourth in the “Transporter” series, is expected to bring in $9 million over the four-day Labor Day holiday. It will expand to 3,434 theaters on Friday.
“The Transporter Refueled” stars Ed Skrein, who replaces Jason Statham as Frank Martin. The film cost $22 million to produce. Camille Delamarre directed from a script by Bill Collage, Adam Cooper and Luc Besson.
“The Transporter Refueled” and the Robert Redford comedy “A Walk in the Woods” head into a typically low-key Labor Day Weekend, with neither expected to top the fourth frame of “Straight Outta Compton.” The rap biopic should come in No. 1 with $10 million, making it the first film to four-peat since “Furious 7” in April.
“A Walk in the Woods” opened to $1.2 million on Wednesday at 1,849 locations, barely edging out the 20th day of Universal-Legendary’s “Straight Outta Compton,” which earned $1.1 million, raising its cume to a sensational $137.9 million.
The original “Transporter” opened to $9.1 million in 2002 and went on to gross $25.3 million. “Transporter 2” is the biggest film in the franchise, having reeled in $43 million at the domestic box office in 2005, followed by 2008’s “Transporter 3” with $31.7 million. “Transporter 3” also grossed $72 million internationally.
TriStar’s second weekend of faith-based drama “War Room” should bring in about $7 million during the Labor Day period, following a solid performance in its opening frame. “War Room” grossed $14.4 million at 1,335 sites in its first six days, with another 200 locations being added for its follow-up weekend.
The domestic summer box office currently stands at $4.3 billion — up 7.5% from last year and the third highest total in history behind the summers of 2013 and 2011.
