Weekend Box Office: 'Coco' Leading Sleepy Weekend With $27M

There are no new wide releases this weekend; Guillermo del Toro's 'The Shape of Water' and James Franco's 'The Disaster Artist' are both impressing at the specialty box office.

The post-Thanksgiving box office is historically sleepy, and this year is no exception.

There isn't one new movie opening nationwide as Hollywood studios prepare for the Christmas onslaught, meaning Disney and Pixar's Coco is easily winning the weekend with a projected $27 million-$28 million as it passes the $100 million mark domestically.

Coco, which earned $6.3 million on Friday, looks likely to fall a mere 46 percent in in its second weekend.

Among other holdovers, Justice League, Wonder and Murder on the Orient Express are staying high up on the chart.

There are two high-profile openings at the specialty box office — Guillermo del Toro's The Shape of Water (Fox Searchlight) and James Franco's The Disaster Artist (A24), while Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (Fox Searchlight) and Lady Bird (A24) expand into more than 1,000 theaters.

They aren't the only award contenders hoping for attention: Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk (Warner Bros.) will be rereleased in 50 Imax cinemas and on 70mm screens in 24 markets, while Marshall (Global Road) will be rereleased in more than 650 theaters.

Based on Friday returns, Shape of Water, which opened in two theaters in New York and Los Angeles, is projected to post a strong screen average in the $85,000 range.

Adored by critics, the film, set during the Cold War, is an adult fairy tale starring Sally Hawkins as a mute cleaner at a U.S. government aerospace facility who bonds with an amphibious creature. The cast also features Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones, Michael Stuhlbarg and Octavia Spencer.

Also earning stellar reviews, The Disaster Artist recounts the making of Tommy Wiseau's 2013 The Room, considered one of the worst movies ever made. In addition to directing, Franco stars as Wiseau, while David Franco, Seth Rogen, Alison Brie, Ari Graynor, Josh Hutcherson and Jacki Weaver co-star. Opening in two theaters in June 2003, The Room earned all of roughly $1,200, but subsequently became a cult favorite for being so awful.

Disaster Artist, which opened in 17 cinemas, is expected to earn a stellar screen average in the $73,000 range.

A number of recent art house films have posted strong screen averages, led by Sony Classics' Call Me by Your Name, starring Armie Hammer. The coming-of-age drama, which bowed in four theaters last weekend, scored a screen average of $103,233, the best number since La La Land in December 2016. Meanwhile, Lady Bird (A24) posted an opening per-screen average of $91,109, and Three Billboards, $80,542.

Three Billboards is projected to earn $4.2 million from 1,430 theaters this weekend, while Lady Bird is expected to take in around $4 million from 1,193 cinemas.