‘Fury’: How does its box office stack up against other WWII epics?

“Fury,” writer-director David Ayer’s World War II drama starring Brad Pitt as the steely leader of an American tank crew, rolled into a box-office battle over the weekend and emerged victorious once the smoke cleared. Taking in an estimated $23.5 million in the U.S. and Canada, the film beat out “Gone Girl” for the No. 1 spot.

En route to garnering generally positive reviews and an A-minus CinemaScore, “Fury” demonstrated that WWII movies can still bring audiences to the multiplex. Although it’s an impressive feat to win the weekend with a serious, R-rated drama — particularly one whose grim violence can be a challenge for viewers — the “Fury” opening does pale a bit in comparison to some other notable WWII military epics. Let’s take a closer look.

Michael Bay’s blockbuster “Pearl Harbor” opened to $59 million back in 2001 and remains a high-water mark for the genre (unless one counts 2011’s “Captain America: The First Avenger” with $65 million, and we don’t). Compared with “Fury,” though, “Pearl Harbor” is something of a different beast: Bay’s film was rated PG-13, partially marketed as a love story and released during the populist-fueled summer movie season, all of which likely broadened its appeal.

A more apt comparison would be Steven Spielberg’s “Saving Private Ryan,” still the gold standard of such movies. Like “Fury,” “Ryan” was a gritty, R-rated drama exploring the horrors of war and the bonds of brotherhood forged in the crucible of combat.

Spielberg’s film opened to $30.6 million back in 1998, and though that sounds in the ballpark of “Fury,” it translates to about $45 million in today’s dollars when adjusted for inflation. “Ryan” also bowed on fewer screens: 2,463, compared with “Fury’s” 3,173.

“Fury” also lagged behind Quentin Tarantino’s twisted take on the war, “Inglourious Basterds.” Though the film’s sensibilities are very different — Tarantino’s is gleefully irreverent, Ayer’s is dead-serious — they had comparable budgets (about $70 million), a similar screen footprint (3,165 for “Inglourious”) and an identical leading man (Pitt). “Basterds” debuted to $38 million.

So where does that leave “Fury”? Right in the company of George Clooney’s “The Monuments Men,” which opened to $22 million in February, and Bryan Singer’s “Valkyrie,” which opened to $21 million in December 2008. During their theatrical runs, both those film finished short of the $100-million mark domestically. “Valkyrie” tallied $83.1 million, and “Monuments” closed with $78 million.

“Fury” could pick up some momentum if it becomes an awards-season contender, something “Monuments” and “Valkyrie” failed to do. But it will also have some WWII-themed company in the coming weeks with the release of “The Imitation Game” on Nov. 21 and “Unbroken” on Christmas Day.

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