Kevin Hart is officially the king of the January box office.
The comedian famously teamed up with rapper Ice Cube for director Tim Story’s comedy Ride Along , a flick that proved extremely popular with moviegoers over the extended four-day weekend. The movie brought home approximately $48.1 million over the holiday.
The film’s three-day total stands at $41.6 million, giving it the highest-grossing January opening on record. Kevin Hart’s comedy effectively knocked the 2008 monster movie Cloverfield from the top spot. Considering Ride Along only cost $25 million to make, chances are Universal Pictures is already talking to its stars about a possible sequel.
Of course, Kevin Hart isn’t the only person who helped Hollywood make an incredible amount of money this month. Mark Wahlberg’s real-life thriller Lone Survivor currently holds the title for the second-highest January opening. The movie made an additional $25.9 million over the holiday weekend.
Although Kevin Hart and Mark Wahlberg were extremely popular at the box office, other films weren’t nearly as successful on the big screen. Paramount Pictures’ watched Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit stumble at bit with moviegoers; the flick pulled in a decidedly wimpy $15 million over the four-day weekend.
The low-budget horror flick Devil’s Due also failed to strike a chord with North American audiences. Despite a viral marketing campaign that employed an extremely creepy demonic baby , the film could only muster up $8.3 million in ticket sales. However, the film managed to recoup its $7 million production budget.
While Ride Along was a major hit for Kevin Hart, this isn’t the comedian’s first taste of box office glory. Hart previously enjoyed big-screen success with his concert films Let Me Explain and Laugh at My Pain , the latter of which earned an impressive $32.2 million .
However, the same doesn’t ring true about the Sylvester Stallone and Robert De Niro boxing comedy Grudge Match . Although Kevin Hart reportedly had a blast working on the film with the Hollywood legends, the movie only made $29 million from moviegoers . Hart and Ice Cube easily topped that figure over the course of four days.
If you need more Kevin Hart in your life, then you really don’t have very long to wait. The comedian stars alongside Regina Hall in director Steve Pink’s remake of About Last Night . The film is slated to hit theaters on Valentine’s Day. Tim Story’s Think Like a Man Too should hit theaters this summer.
Did you catch Kevin Hart and Ice Cube in Ride Along over the weekend?