Steve Carell and Timothee Chalamet scored Amazon its best opening weekend ever with 'Beautiful Boy'
- "Beautiful Boy" gave Amazon its best opening yet over the weekend and is set for a wide release November 2.
- It pulled in over $221,000 in just four theaters in Los Angeles and New York.
- The film's opening is a step up from Amazon's last release, "Life Itself," which misfired at the box office.
- Amazon's next release will be "Suspiria" later this month.
"Beautiful Boy," starring Timothée Chalamet as a drug addict and Steve Carell as his father, handed Amazon Studios its best opening yet in just four theaters in Los Angeles and New York, according to Indiewire.
The film grossed over $221,000 and over $55,000 per theater despite mixed reviews from critics (it currently has a 64% Rotten Tomatoes critic score). Chalamet is a sought-after young actor after his breakout and Oscar-nominated performance in last year's "Call Me by Your Name," and his name seems to have meaning among audiences.
"Beautiful Boy" is set for a wide release on November 2.
The movie is a strong step in the right direction after Amazon's last release in September, the critically panned "Life Itself," which was directed by "This Is Us" creator Dan Fogelman. Amazon bet on the film being a hit with audiences and gave it the studio's widest release yet. That backfired, as it also became the biggest box-office flop of the year.
"Life Itself" opened to only $2.1 million - the worst opening this year for a movie released on over 2,500 screen - and went on to gross just over $4 million. But it would have been "economic suicide" for the movie to start with a limited release after the poor critical reception, BoxOfficeAnalyst.com's Doug Stone told Business Insider in September.
As for some of Amazon's other releases this year, the Joaquin Phoenix-starring revenge-thriller "You Were Never Really Here" made just $2.5 million and Gus Van Sant's "Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot" made only $1.4 million domestically and $2 million worldwide.
Amazon's next release is the remake of classic horror film "Suspiria" from Luca Guadagnino, the director of "Call Me by Your Name." It comes to theaters October 26.