‘Ready Player One’ plays to the audience with $53.7m win

Game on for Ready Player One. Steven Spielberg’s virtual reality adventure launched slightly above expectations with $53.7 million (Dh197.2 million) over the four-day Easter weekend and $41.8 million over the three-day weekend, according to final box-office figures on Monday.

The opening gave Spielberg his best since 2008’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, as well as 2018’s high-grossing debut for anything not named Black Panther.

Still, for a $175 million film, the Warner Bros release will need to have strong legs to make Ready Player One a success. Its international rollout is helping, where the film grossed $128 million over the weekend, including an especially robust $61.7 million from China.

Tyler Perry’s Acrimony followed in second with $17.1 million over the three-day weekend. The Lionsgate release, starring Taraji P. Henson, drew an overwhelmingly female audience. The film is releasing in the UAE on April 5.