Each Thursday we look at what is going to be coming out in theaters this weekend, show you the trailers for the big releases, predict the box office winner and just generally give you enough of a carrot to pull you through the rest of the work week.   The king looks like he may finally be dethroned as six new releases take on Black Panther.

SIX new films drop this weekend, with something targeting every niche….even whatever niche Isle of Dogs is targeting.  The Wes Anderson-directed, star studded animated film about …an island of dogs is getting the best reviews of any release this week, currently at 92% on RT at time of writing.  The only other of the six releases with good reviews is the Steven Soderbergh-helmed horror film Unsane.

Pacific Rim: Uprising is the highest-profile release of the weekend, but whereas its predecessor garnered good reviews generally, the follow-up (which is not directed by Guillermo del Toro) is only at 43% on RT at time of writing.  Rounding out the releases is the Christian biopic Paul the Apostle of Christ, the animated abomination Sherlock Gnomes, and the romance Midnight Sun.

Isle of Dogs (Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, PG-13, 1hr 41min)

Midnight Sun (Patrick Schwarzenegger, Bella Thorne, PG-13, 1hr 31min)

Pacific Rim: Uprising (John Boyega, Scott Eastwood, PG-13, 1hr 50min)

Paul the Apostle of Christ (Jim Caviezel, Oliver Martinez, PG-13, 1hr 47min )

Sherlock Gnomes (Johnny Depp, Emily Blunt, PG, 1hr 26min)

Unsane (Claire Foy, Juno Temple, R, 1hr 38min)

How Did We Do Last Week? KT picked Black Panther for the first five-time box office champion since Avatar nearly a decade ago, and MCU triumphed again.  This time Black Panther held off the reboot of the Tomb Raider franchise $28.6 to $23.8 million.  Opening to four times its projected gross was third place finisher, the Christian film I Can Only Imagine, with $17.1 million.

Black Panther continues to smash its way through box office milestones.  It has made, thus far, $610.05 million domestically and $1.2 billion globally.  It is now the #7 film all-time at the US box office.  If projections hold this weekend, it will become the highest grossing superhero film of all-time passing both #6 Star Wars: The Last Jedi and #5 The Avengers.  The film has had incredible staying power, but it would need to hang in for a few more weeks to challenge #4 Jurassic World or #3 Titanic.  But, at this point, you can’t say it’s impossible. Internationally, it is now up to #14 and still climbing.
(2018 Prediction Record: 11-0; Lifetime prediction record 96-10).

WHO WILL WIN THE WEEKEND?
All good things come to an end.  The attrition of the weekly box office drop is going to finally knock T’Challa off the throne.  I don’t expect a huge opening from Pacific Rim: Uprising, but it will be enough to get the win against a diverse group of fellow openers and a Black Panther in week SIX of its amazing run in theaters.