Despite not having the biggest marketing campaign, the Ice Cube and Kevin Hart comedy Ride Along has surprised many not just by topping the US box office, but by having the highest January opening in history. It’s $41.2 million beats out previous champ Cloverfield’s $40.1 million.
It certainly helped that Kevin Hart is extremely hot right now, especially with African-American audiences, although the movie proved to have widespread appeal (although African-Americans did make up half the audience).
It was very bad news for Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, which Paramount has been eyeing as a second franchise for Chris Pine. However it wasn’t even the second highest opener of the weekend as it was beaten by the animated comedy The Nut Job, which took $20.5 million. Jack Ryan could only place fourth with $17.2 million, not helped by reviews that suggested it was a bit of a journeyman effort.
The final new entry was Devil’s Due, which tanked with $8.5 million, suggesting, as several other recent films have, that the novelty of found footage films is wearing offer and audiences now need more than just that if they’re going to show up.
Some films also got a post Oscar nomination bump, with American Hustle the biggest beneficiary as it got a 27% bump from last weekend. However the likes of August: Osage County, Gravity, 12 Years A Slave, Dallas Buyer’s Club and Captain Phillips also rose from last weekend.
Take a look below for the US box office top 10 for the weekend of January 17th-19th.
| Rank | Title | Weekend Gross (millions) | Total Gross to date (millions) |
| 1 | Ride Along | $41.2 | $41.2 |
| 2 | Lone Survivor | $23.2 | $74.0 |
| 3 | The Nut Job | $20.5 | $20.5 |
| 4 | Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit | $17.2 | $17.2 |
| 5 | Frozen | $11.9 | $332.6 |
| 6 | American Hustle | $10.6 | $116.4 |
| 7 | Devil’s Due | $8.5 | $8.5 |
| 8 | August: Osage County | $7.5 | $18.1 |
| 9 | The Wolf Of Wall Street | $7.5 | $90.2 |
| 10 | Saving Mr. Banks | $4.1 | $75.3 |