'No Time to Die' Opens to $56M at Home, Crosses $300M Globally

►No Time to Die finally opened with a solid if unspectacular $56 million in North America, less than the conservative $60 million figure analysts were projecting. THR's Pam McClintock writes that the opening underscores the ongoing challenge facing the box office recovery as studios begin to release adult-skewing movies that were delayed because of the pandemic. 

In mitigation, NTTD runs a hefty 163 minutes, reducing showtimes, and historically Bond movies have never sported huge openings, relying instead on strong multiples. The films also continue to be bigger internationally.

Overseas, NTTD saw its total climb to $257.4 million after earning another encouraging $89.5 million for the weekend. That puts the worldwide tally at $313.3 million without China, where it rolls out Oct. 29.  

Venom 2 came in second place, falling 65 percent in its sophomore outing. The sequel now has a stellar 10-day domestic total of $141.7 million, and an early international total of $43.9 million, for a global cume of $185.6 million. 

Elsewhere, Dune crossed the $100 million mark overseas, where it opened several weeks ago ahead of its Oct. 22 domestic debut. The sci-fi epic finished Sunday with a foreign tally of $117.1 million. The box office report.

—World champ in the making. War epic The Battle of Lake Changjin continued its march into the box-office record books over the weekend, adding a healthy $108.5 million. After a week and a half on Chinese screens, the tentpole has earned a whopping $633.2 million. Ticketing app Maoyan projects the film to top out at $830 million, which would put it just ahead of the comedy Hi, Mom ($821 million) as the world’s top-grossing blockbuster of 2021. The China box office analysis.

20 Most Powerful Women in Global Entertainment

►"We need to change the power dynamic." Here it is, THR's annual list of 20 of the world’s most powerful female entertainment executives. These execs are shaping content for the world, opening doors for the next generation and continuing the push for equity. The list. 

—"You’re a terrible company." John Oliver once again took aim at “Business Daddy” AT&T on Sunday’s episode of Last Week Tonight. This time he took issue with a Reuters report revealing that AT&T helped create and fund One America News, a far right-wing network that has spread conspiracy theories regarding the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the 2020 election. The story. 

—Harvard-Westlake hacked! THR's Gary Baum has a thoroughly worrying report on the hacking and exposure of confidential academic files belonging to Los Angeles private school Harvard-Westlake. Archived SAT scores, GPAs, transcripts and college recommendation letters were downloaded, then sent to a group of parents and the school newspaper, as well as THR. The story. 

—Rule (out) Britannia. THR's Alex Ritman has the scoop on the Britannia Awards, the annual star-studded bash organized by the British Academy’s L.A. branch, being postponed to next year. No direct reason was given by BAFTA, but the move comes following last year’s cancellation of the event due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The story. 

—Gaming's #MeToo reckoning erupts into agency turf war. THR's Eriq Gardner reports that a California agency and the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission had a secret deal to divide work on an investigation of Activision Blizzard. Now, three months after a huge lawsuit was filed, the two agencies are firing shots at each other. The story.

—First look. Timothee Chalamet offered a first look at Warner Bros.'s upcoming film, Wonka. Taking to social media Sunday, the actor shared a photo of himself on set, dressed in character as the chocolatier, donning a top hat and topcoat. The story. 

Kim Kardashian West on 'SNL'   

►"Surpassed (low) expectations." Just when THR critic Lovia Gyarkye thought she was out and done with writing about KKW and the fam, the influencer hosted Saturday Night Live and pulled her back in. And once again, Lovia's take nails it: "Feelings about Kardashian West are part of her brand’s machination and serve as a peculiar cultural litmus test. Giving her the benefit of the doubt might imply indifference to the negative impact of her ascendence; writing her off could seem unfair. Either way, you become part of the spectacle." The review. 

—MIPCOM hot list. From a historical drama about social justice revolutionaries in New Zealand to the return of America’s favorite small-screen serial killer, here are ten of the high-profile programs being pitched at the annual TV market show in Cannes. The list. 

—"I didn’t instigate the split." Paul McCartney is setting the record straight on who was behind the decision to split up the Beatles. Speaking to BBC Radio, McCartney said it was John Lennon who wanted to break up the band and he was quite happy to continue: "This was my band, this was my job, this was my life, so I wanted it to continue." The story. 

—284 million by 2026. Disney+ will reach more subscribers than Netflix by 2025 and hit 284.2 million subs by 2026, according to a new report from research firm Digital TV Research. The same report pegs Netflix hitting 270.7 million subscribers by 2026. The story.

—Not so curious. George Clooney on Sunday ruled out having a second career in politics, saying he would rather have a “nice life” and is looking to reduce his workload. Clooney said he planned to take on fewer projects while he is healthy and can still 'play basketball and do the things I love.” The story. 

—"I’ve been hiding this too long." Balmain designer Olivier Rousteing is opening up more about a tragic accident that happened inside his home, one that left him hospitalized and ashamed as he sought to keep the recovery under wraps while keeping up appearances. The story. 

Reviews: 'Ghostbusters: Afterlife,'  A24's 'Lamb,' Clooney's 'Tender Bar' 

►"Less slime, more heart." THR critic Sheri Linden reviews Sony's Ghostbusters: Afterlife. Carrie Coon, Paul Rudd, Finn Wolfhard and Mckenna Grace star in director Jason Reitman’s supernatural action-comedy, which adds a contemporary chapter to the franchise that began with his father’s 1984 hit movie. The review. 

—"Ewe don't Noomi." THR's chief film critic David Rooney reviews A24's Lamb (Dýrið). Noomi Rapace and Hilmir Snær Gudnason play Icelandic sheep farmers who seize on a startling discovery during lambing season as a way to heal their pain in Valdimar Johannsson's first feature. The review.  

—"A small-scale charmer with an ace turn from Affleck." Sheri also reviews George Clooney's The Tender Bar which screened at the London Film Festival. Starring Ben Affleck and Tye Sheridan, the comic drama, based on J.R. Moehringer’s memoir, focuses on a working-class Long Island boy who finds a surrogate father in his book-loving bartender uncle. The review.  

In other news... 

—TV review: Showtime's Buried.

—TV production boom accelerates as MIPCOM kicks off.

—MIPCOM: Fremantle’s Europe CEO on what’s driving the global production boom.

—MIPCOM: Sisi reboot, Janet Jackson, Ghislaine Maxwell docs among hot sellers.

—MIPCOM: Newen unveils diversity and inclusion committee.

—Jungle Cruise star Jack Whitehall signs exclusive deal with Banijay. 

—Kim Kardashian West chooses Chris Rock, Amy Schumer, John Cena in Bachelorette spoof on SNL.

—Kris Jenner, Khloe Kardashian join Kim Kardashian West in SNL courtroom parody to discuss family issues.

—Matt Damon, Jodie Comer on how The Last Duel is “relevant today.”

—Pose, Mayans M.C., Love, Victor among Imagen Awards winners.

—Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples comic Saga set to return in January 2022.

What else we're reading...

—"Paul McCartney Doesn’t Really Want to Stop the Show" [New Yorker]

—"Disney Meets Roadblocks to Releasing Movies in China" [Wall Street Journal]

—"Olivia Rodrigo Was the Queen of Summer" [Bloomberg]

—"'A Story People Need To Know': Behind A Shocking TV Series About the Opioid Crisis" [The Guardian]

—"How Conservative Comic Greg Gutfeld Overtook Stephen Colbert In Ratings" [Salon]

Today... 

... in 2006, NBC unleashed Liz Lemon, Jack Donaghy and Tracy Jordan during the 8 p.m. hour with 30 Rock. The satirical sitcom ran for seven seasons to 2013 and was nominated for 103 Emmy Awards during its run. The original review. 

Today's birthdays: Amitabh Bachchan (79), Jane Krakowski (53), Joan Cusack (59), Matt Bomer (44), Claudia Black (49), Michelle Trachtenberg (36), Emily Deschanel (45), Stephen Moyer (52), Lennie James (56), Cardi B (29), Justin Lin (50), Takeshi Kaneshiro (48), Artie Lange (54), David Morse (68)