September is usually a quieter month for movies, but not in 2017. IT has been a box office sensation, mother! has drawn waves of attention for its polarizing reception, and now Kingsman: The Golden Circle is supplying extra cinematic excitement for adult moviegoers. Unlike its predecessor, Kingsman: The Secret Service, The Golden Circle has received mixed reviews, but fortunately for 20th Century Fox, that didn't affect the sequel from kicking off well commercially, as it drew in $3.4 million in Thursday night screenings.
This is a decent improvement over Kingsman: The Secret Service's Thursday performance, which drew in $2 million before its $36.2 million opening weekend launch. According to Box Office Mojo, Kingsman: The Golden Circle also now has the honor of having the second largest Thursday preview performance, following behind IT, which collected $13.5 million, and ahead of The Magnificent Seven and The Equalizer, which snagged $1.75 million and $1.5 million, respectively. The Golden Circle's only other opening night competition was Friend Request, which drew in $110,000. Warner Bros decided to not hold any preview screenings for The LEGO Ninjago Movie.
Kingsman: The Golden Circle has gotten off to an admirable start in theaters, and if earlier predictions are corrected, it will continue to enjoy financial success. It was previously estimated that the sequel would collect between $42-48 million over the opening weekend. These estimates often change as the days passed, but if The Golden Circle's numbers are within that ballpark, it would be comparable to how 2014's 22 Jump Street improved over 2012's 21 Jump Street by opening at $57 million, over $20 million more from the first movie's opening. So despite The Golden Circle's mixed reviews (it currently ranks at 49% among critics on Rotten Tomatoes), it doesn't sound like we have to worry about it not bringing in the big bucks. Well, big from a September/October perspective, anyway.
Following the description of the Kingsman organization headquarters at the hands of Poppy Adams, a global entrepreneur who's part of the Golden Circle crime syndicate, Kingsman: The Golden Circle follows Eggsy and his allies traveling to the United States to team up with their American counterparts, Statesman, to defeat the new threat that's plaguing the world. The main cast includes Taron Egerton, Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, Channing Tatum, Jeff Bridges, Halle Berry, Pedro Pascal and Mark Strong.
Whether you've already seen Kingsman: The Golden Circle or are waiting until the weekend to watch it, be sure to read our review of the movie. You can also look through our 2017 movie premiere guide to find out what else is being released in theaters for the rest of the year, and stay tuned for whether or not Kingsman 3 will be greenlit.
