It’s hard not to laugh at what is topping the U.S. box office. Sitting at No. 1 this past weekend was Jackass Forever, a doc-style film in which a group of serious characters do wild stunts and laugh at each other like 14-year-old boys. It’s wonderful. It just is. 

The film sold $23.5 million domestically over its first three days of release, blowing away every other film currently screening around the country. I really did not see that happening, and I love it. 

I haven’t seen the film, but I’ve seen a whole lot of stills. I also noticed that they added Eric Andre, Tyler the Creator, Rachel Wolfson, Rob Dyrdek, and Machine Gun Kelly to the crew. Perfect addditions! I don’t like the Paul brothers, but you really gotta wonder what adding one of those guys, as well as maybe a brave and athletic female influencer, would have done. 

Anyhow, back from the classic crew is, of course, the leader, Johnny Knoxville, and OG classics Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Wee Man, Preston Lacy, Chris Raab, Tony Hawk, and my guy Lance Bangs (among others). These are the guys I want to hang out with in 2022 for some reason. I can’t explain it. I guess they remind of a much, much, much less serious time in my life, and that feels good. Let’s go with that! 

And, one more thing: I just can’t believe how good this cast is. I can’t wait to see Andre, Tyler, and Wolfson, especially.

Also at the box

Roland Emmerich’s new PG-13 sci-fi epic, Moonfall, settled into the No. 2 spot at the domestic box office, selling $10 million in tickets over in its opening weekend. 

This one isn’t exactly getting glowing reviews, but who cares. None of Emmerich’s movies have received glowing reviews, and just about all of them, in my opinion, are a blast. I especially love, and no-joke, often revisit, The Day After Tomorrow and 2012. Two of the great modern disaster films, in my book. 

So what I’m saying is this: Emmerich is working in his sweet spot, and Moonfall is probably a very fun thing to go see on a big screen if you feel safe doing so. I haven’t seen it yet, but I feel comfortable recommending that experience. 

Taking the No. 3 spot at last weekend’s box office was, of course, the inevitable Spider-Man: No Way Home, which sold another $9.6 million, upping the blockbuster’s eight-week domestic sales total to $749 million. 

The film has sold $1.78 billion worldwide, making it the sixth-highest grossing film ever released. Think about that. During a pandemic in which the movie-theater business is down like 70% or more most weeks, this Spidey flick comes along and is probably going to end up being the No. 4 or No. 5 highest-grossing film ever. Maybe No. 3! 

Here’s how the all-time list currently  looks:

1. Avatar (director James Cameron): $2.84 billion

2. Avengers: Endgame (Russo Brothers): $2.80 Billion

3. Titanic (James Cameron): $2.2 Billion

4. Star Wars: The Force Awakens (J.J. Abrams): $2.07 billion

5. Avengers: Infinity War (Russo Brothers): $2.05 billion

6. Spider-Man: No Way Home (Jon Watts): $1.78 billion

New this week

While Jackass Forever, Moonfall, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Scream, and Sing 2 should continue to sell, a whole lot of smaller flicks are starting to hit screens, including The Worst Person in the World, Lingui, The Long Night, Cosmic Dawn, Blacklight, Catch the Fair One, Death on the Nile, Supercool, and the J-Lo rom-com Marry Me, also starring Owen Wilson. 

Of those, I’d recommend The Worst Person in the World the highest. Death on the Nile, Blacklight, and Marry Me should be playing everywhere by this weekend. 

Go to the movies!

ScreenRant 

By the time this column hits the stands, the Oscar nominations will have already been announced, so you can expect a response to the noms in next week’s column. 

My major predictions, reduced and listed:

Licorice Pizza is going to get a whole lot of nominations, which I find strange.

Olivia Colman is going to suddenly be the front-runner for Best Actress for her incredible performance in Maggie Gyllenhaal’s great The Lost Daughter.

Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch will not only get a lot of technical nominations, but also Best Original Screenplay and Best Picture.

A big Steven Spielberg campaign will officially kick off, and be aggressive, for West Side Story.