No Second Chances: Summer Movies Have Hard Time Sustaining Success

So far in 2016, nineteen different movies have held the top spot on the box-office chart, but only four movies released this year have managed to stay at number one for longer than two weeks in a row. In fact, half of the movies that have grabbed the top spot have been unable to hold on to it for longer than a single weekend, giving in to a new release the following week. This summer has been especially tough on potential blockbusters that aspired to a long, successful run in theaters.

Of the four 2016 films that have put together a sustained reign at the top, three of them - Zootopia, The Jungle Book and Finding Dory - are family-oriented movies, and the fourth - Deadpool - is an R-rated comic book adaptation. Each of these films stayed at number one for three consecutive weeks.

Some of the year's biggest hits - Captain America: Civil War, The Secret Life Of Pets, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Kung Fu Panda 3 - have only managed to stay at number one for two weeks in a row before bowing to a newcomer. This year has been the year of the big drop, with several movies posting huge opening weekends only to see ticket sales fall precipitously in subsequent weeks.

The year has also given us a long list of movies that have generated some interest in their opening weekends, but not enough interest to keep audiences coming back the next weekend. Ride Along 2, The Revenant, The Boss, The Angry Birds Movie, X-Men: Apocalypse, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, The Conjuring 2, Star Trek Beyond and Jason Bourne have all sat atop the chart for only one week.

This weekend, Suicide Squad has the chance to remain at number one for a third consecutive week, a feat that would get it into the year's most exclusive club. The competition will be tight, though, and this week is likely to see another one-time winner rise to the number-one spot.