‘Bad Boys: Ride or Die’ leads box office with $56 million debut

This image released by Sony Pictures shows Will Smith, right, and Martin Lawrence in “Bad Boys: Ride or Die.” (Frank Masi/Columbia Pictures-Sony via AP)

LOS ANGELES – “Bad Boys: Ride or Die” opened with $56 million this weekend to lead all films in North America, according to industry estimates released Sunday.

The latest entry in the series of buddy cop films once again stars Martin Lawrence and Will Smith, and was directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. Its weekend total was far ahead of “The Garfield Movie,” which grossed $10 million in its third week of release, Comscore reported.

The fantasy film “IF” was third with $8 million Friday through Sunday in its fourth week.

“The Watchers,” a horror film directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan, daughter of director M. Night Shyamalan, opened with $7 million.

Fifth place went to “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” which took in another $5.4 million in its fifth week.

Rounding out the top 10 domestic releases were “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” ($4.2 million), “The Fall Guy” ($2.7 million), “Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” ($2.4 million), “Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” ($1.9 million) and “The Strangers: Chapter 1” ($1.8 million).

This weekend’s overall three-day box office haul was estimated at $103.5 million. The year-to-date total is $2.825 billion –down 26 percent from the figure at this time last year, according to Comscore.

“Ride or Die,” produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, is Smith’s first theatrical test since his 2022 slap of Rock earned him a 10-year Oscar ban. The “Bad Boys” film was in development at the time and ultimately went forward with about a $100 million production budget.

Given that “Bad Boys” trailed May disappointments like “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” and “The Fall Guy” – both of which struggled to pop with ticket buyers despite very good reviews – the “Ride or Die” opening counts as a critical weekend win for the movie business. “Ride or Die” added $48.6 million internationally.

In the film, which comes 29 years after the original, Smith and Lawrence reprise their roles as Miami detectives. The plot revolves around uncovering a scheme to frame their late police captain (Joe Pantoliano). In one of the movie’s most notable scenes, Lawrence slaps Smith and calls him a “bad boy.”

Last weekend’s top film “The Garfield Movie,” slid to second place. Also from Sony, the family animated comedy collected $10 million in ticket sales over its third weekend, bringing its domestic gross to $68.6 million. (With CNS report)