An update on Sergio’s box office post published yesterday (Sunday) afternoon as it usually is (read it here)…

It appears, after a final tally, that “Hidden Figures” actually topped the weekend’s box office, taking the No. 1 slot over “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” which was initially announced as the top earner for the weekend.

Sunday’s estimates showed the two films in a very tight race, with “Rogue One” having a slight edge over “Hidden Figures.” But the latter film pushed ahead thanks reportedly to a late surge in post-Sunday church service ticket sales that gave it the final win, with $22.8 million over “Rogue One’s” $21.9 million.




According to box office exit polls, “Hidden Figures” played to a diverse audience, with 43% percent of ticket buyers being white and 37% black; women made up 64% of ticket buyers; and 56% were 35 or older (according to The Hollywood Reporter). And it may have performed much better if it weren’t for a winter storm that froze much of the east coast and some in the south.

“It is a film for everyone regardless of age, gender or race, and effectively illustrates the power of the human mind and spirit,” said Fox domestic distribution president Chris Aronson. “In these challenging times, its life-affirming message comes along at a perfect time.”

With a much coveted A+ CinemaScore, “Hidden Figures” – which tells the story of 3 brilliant black women at NASA who were the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history and turned around the Space Race – stars Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae as the real-life African-American mathematicians Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson who helped NASA put the first men into space even while having to endure a segregated workplace. Their story, however, had been obscured for decades… until now.

Go see it! With continued strong word of mouth, the $25 million (budget) film should be profitable for 20th Century Fox.