The opening weekend proved disappointing in comparison with the rest of the series.
'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2' predictably came out on top for its box office opening weekend, but while it has proven popular, the takings were still rather a lot less than its predecessor. A less than overwhelming end to the popular teen dystopian franchise.
Mockingjay Part 2 was a lukewarm box office debut
The second part of 'Mockingjay' (which is the third and final book instalment of the Suzanne Collins trilogy) grossed just $101 million in the US at the weekend, which is a whole 17% reduction from 'Part 1'. That's against a budget of $160 million. On the other hand it's still going to be one hell of a payday for Lionsgate, as the movie has managed to rein in a further $146 million internationally.
It's not the first time in Hollywood that viewers have lost interest in a franchise before the ending; most recently, with Peter Jackson's 'The Hobbit' trilogy, final film 'The Battle of the Five Armies' was unexpectedly the lowest grossing film of the franchise. However, the act of spreading out one book across three huge movies stretched a lot of critics' credulity to breaking point.
More: Read our review of 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2'
And, while 'Back To The Future' reached enormous success upon its release in 1985, 'Back To The Future III' drew little interest in comparison. It's a fairly unusual occurrence when it comes to book-to-film franchises, however. 'The Lord Of The Rings', 'Harry Potter' and 'Twilight' are all examples of when a series has reached an explosive finale at the box office.
The less-than-impressive takings from 'Mockingjay - Part 2' are hardly going to take away from Jennifer Lawrence's post-Hunger Games career either. The Oscar winning star could face another go at the Academy Awards with her latest film 'Joy'; a film in which she is re-united with co-star Bradley Cooper and director David O. Russell (of 'Silver Linings Playbook' and 'American Hustle').
She is also currently filming a sci-fi adventure with Chris Pratt entitled 'Passengers'.
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