鈥� 鈥� stayed at the top of the North American box office in its second weekend in theaters. The Universal and DreamWorks Animation movie earned $30 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The franchise featuring the voice of Jack Black is responsible for over $1.9 billion at the box office since it launched in 2008 and spawned several animated series, shorts, video games and a holiday special. The fourth installment, playing in 4,067 locations in North America, has already made $107.7 million domestically.
There were several new movies arriving in over 1,000 theaters (or expanding) this weekend, including Lionsgate鈥檚 Mark Wahlberg dog movie 鈥� ,鈥� Focus Features鈥� comedic satire 鈥淭he American Society of Magical Negroes鈥� and A24鈥檚 Kristen Stewart-led bodybuilding thriller 鈥� .鈥�
But the charts still belonged to the franchises, including 鈥� ,鈥� which came in a very close second in its third weekend, with $29.1 million. That's down only 37% from last weekend. It鈥檚 now made $205.3 million domestically. The first film, which was released simultaneously in theaters and on streaming, capped out at around $435 million globally, while 鈥淧art Two鈥� is already at almost $500 million worldwide.
鈥� 鈥� did the best of the newcomers, landing in third place with $7.5 million from 3,003 locations. The studio went into the weekend expecting something in the $8 million to $10 million range. Its low production cost and international presales should yield profits. Directed by Simon Cellan Jones and written by Michael Brandt, the movie is based on the true story of an adventure racer who befriends a stray dog on a perilous 435-mile trek in the Dominican Republic. Simu Liu plays one of Wahlberg鈥檚 teammates. With an A CinemaScore, the studio is hoping positive word of mouth will boost sales in the coming weeks.
鈥� 鈥� opened in 1,362 locations to $2.5 million. Written and directed by Rose Glass (鈥� 鈥�), it鈥檚 a pulpy 鈥�80s-set Western thriller about an isolated gym manager (Stewart) and a bodybuilder (Katy O鈥橞rian) passing through town.
鈥淭he American Society of Magical Negroes鈥� opened in 1,147 theaters and made an estimated $1.3 million. According to exit data, 52% of the opening weekend audience was Black. The movie, written and directed by Kobi Libii, is a satire about a secret society of Black people dedicated to making white lives easier. Justice Smith and David Alan Grier star.
In the first weekend following the Oscars, 鈥� 鈥� added $2.3 million globally, bumping its total to $112.6 million.
Next weekend, 鈥淕hostbusters: Frozen Empire鈥� will arrive in theaters, armed with proton packs and brand name recognition.
鈥淲hen there鈥檚 not a newcomer dominating the marketplace, it makes for a rather slow weekend,鈥� said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore. 鈥淣ow we鈥檙e just waiting for 鈥楪hostbusters: Frozen Empire鈥� and 鈥楪odzilla x Kong: The New Empire.鈥� That combo should take us out of the month of March on a high note.鈥�
He added: 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to have to have a lot of patience until we get to May and 鈥楾he Fall Guy鈥� and the summer movie season. But there鈥檚 some great movies on the way.鈥�
Estimated ticket sales are for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. 鈥淜ung Fu Panda 4,鈥� $30 million.
2. 鈥淒une: Part Two,鈥� $29.1 million
3. 鈥淎rthur the King,鈥� $7.5 million.
4. 鈥淚maginary,鈥� $5.6 million.
5. 鈥淐abrini, 鈥�$2.8 million.
6. 鈥淟ove Lies Bleeding,鈥� $2.5 million.
7. 鈥淏ob Marley: One Love,鈥� $2.3 million.
8. 鈥淥ne Life,鈥� $1.7 million
9. 鈥淭he American Society of Magical Negroes,鈥� $1.3 million
10. 鈥淥rdinary Angels,鈥� $1 million.
Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press
