Weekend Box Office: The pandemic's second Liam Neeson thriller takes out Wonder Woman 1984

Our elected officials failed us a lot in 2020, but one of the most tangible ways that they failed us was in willfully ignoring the realities of the threat posed by COVID-19, resulting in what will soon be a full year of restrictions and lockdowns. It’s hard to really understand how long it’s been, though, so here’s a clearer illustration of just how prolonged the coronavirus nightmare has been: As of this weekend, the U.S. box office has now gotten two Liam Neeson thrillers since the pandemic began. Two! And no Marvel movies! The first was Honest Thief in October, and now we’ve gotten the Clint Eastwood-esque The Marksman—which stars Liam Neeson as a certified Real American living on a ranch near the Mexican border and aiming his rifle at immigrants crossing into his property. It won the box office this past weekend, making a fairly impressive $3.2 million. (It was also, for the record, the third Liam Neeson movie the pandemic if you count the comedy Made In Italy. Fourth if you count Ordinary Love from February. The man works.)