Despite backlash, Tupac biopic ‘All Eyez on Me’ smashes box office expectations

Released on what would have been Tupac Shakur’s 46th birthday on June 16, the Benny Boom-directed All Eyez on Me biopic grossed an estimated US$27.1 million in its debut weekend in North America.

Smashing analyst expectations of US$17 million to US$20 million, the film landed third place over the weekend behind Wonder Woman (US$40.8 million) and top-seller Cars 3 (US$53.5 million).

Named after Shakur’s fourth studio album, the film follows the rise of the Harlem-born hip-hop artist who defined an epoch with his music before the tragic 1996 drive-by shooting.

The biopic, which stars Demetrius Shipp Jr. and Kat Graham (who plays Jada Pinkett-Smith), received negative reviews by film critics. A 24% Rotten Tomatoes rating saw the film labeled “surface-skimming.”

“Despite Demetrius Shipp Jr.’s fine lead performance, All Eyez on Me is mostly a surface-skimming, by-the-numbers biopic of a larger-than-life icon,” Rotten Tomatoes wrote.

IMDB user Travis Houze wrote: “Errors in Tupac’s life are more prominent than ever. Even to the point that Tupac is performing Hail Mary to a sold out crowd and the audience knows all the words, however Hail Mary came out AFTER he died.”

Jada Pinkett-Smith took to Twitter over the weekend to say she found the film’s errors “deeply hurtful”.

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.