The Independence Day weekend box office wars was very disappointing in 2014 as nothing came out that really excited the family holiday crowds. As a result of the lack of excitement for any of the new Independence Day releases, the latest Transformers movie, Age of Extinction, won the box office for the second week in a row.
Despite critics hating it and no one admitting to liking the movie at all, the film received a solid CinemaScore and brought in another $36.4 million domestically, to bring its total to $174.7. The drop was 63.6% and the movie is below the standard set by the previous movies, but it has made $575.6 million worldwide, so it is a major success regardless of what anyone thinks of its quality.
Tammy, the road trip comedy with Melissa McCarthy and Susan Sarandon, opened to a $32.9 million five-day holiday weekend, but its $21.1 million weekend box office totals made it fall short of the mark set by the Transformers movie. The opening was also less than McCarthy’s last two movies, The Heat and Identity Thief, so people might be tiring of her comedy. However, with a production budget of only $20 million, it was still a financial success.
The same can’t be said of Earth to Echo, the big family movie that hit over the holiday weekend. Despite being aimed towards kids, the weekend box office was horrible for the movie, whose trailers made it look like more of an E.T. rip-off. The movie only made $13.5 million over the five days and opened in sixth place.
The other new movie, the supernatural thriller Deliver Us From Evil opened in third with $9.5 million for the weekend and a total of $15 million. The movie was a festival success but the “B-” CinemaScore should see it crash and burn out rather quickly.
Here’s the complete weekend box office breakdown:
Weekend Box Office
| Position | Title | Weekend | Total |
| 1 | Transformers: Age of Extinction | $36.4M | $174.7M |
| 2 | Tammy | $21.1 | $32.9 |
| 3 | Deliver Us From Evil | $9.5 | $15.0 |
| 4 | 22 Jump Street | $9.4 | $158.8 |
| 5 | How to Train Your Dragon 2 | $8.7 | $140.0 |
| 6 | Earth to Echo | $8.2 | $13.5 |
| 7 | Maleficent | $6.1 | $213.8 |
| 8 | Jersey Boys | $5.1 | $36.7 |
| 9 | Think Like a Man Too | $4.9 | $57.1 |
| 10 | Edge of Tomorrow | $3.6 | $9.08 |
Weekend box office estimates courtesy of Box Office Mojo