In its second theatrical run of the year, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back has made its way into the domestic box office top five once again. The re-release of the 1980 classic was shown at nearly 2,100 cinemas, raking in an impressive $900,000 over the weekend. When combined with its original theatrical release four decades ago, these new earnings brings its total US gross to a whopping $292.1 million.
The Empire Strikes Back‘s re-release comes during the 40th anniversary of the film, but it’s also only one of the many classic movies making the rounds in theaters during a time when so few new releases are arriving due to COVID-19. Some of the other hit flicks emerging back into cinemas this year include King Kong, The Color Purple, The Shining, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, and Fiddler on the Roof.
That’s not to say there aren’t any new motion pictures making waves, though. Christopher Nolan’s Tenet is still sitting in first place and brought in $3.4 million over the weekend. In second and third place, meanwhile, were The New Mutants at $1.1 million and Unhinged at $1 million. The Empire Strikes Back took the fourth spot with its aforementioned $900,000 haul, followed relatively closely by Infidel with $745,000.
The middle film in the original Star Wars trilogy – and certainly the darkest and most dramatic – The Empire Strikes Back is largely regarded as the best entry in the entire franchise, so it’s not terribly surprising to see it earning itself plenty of theatrical attention even in modern times. The fact that it’s fourth at the box office so long after its original release is also a bright spot in an otherwise less than stellar year for movies.
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back is now playing at select theaters.
