“Kung Fu Panda 4“ remained at the top of the North American box office in its second weekend in theaters. The Universal The DreamWorks Animation film brought in $30 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The Jack Black-voiced franchise has grossed over $1.9 billion at the box office since its launch in 2008 and spawned multiple animated series, short films, video games and a Christmas special. The fourth installment, playing at 4,067 locations in North America, has already grossed $107.7 million domestically.
Several new films arrived (or expanded) into over 1,000 theaters this weekend, including Lionsgate’s Mark Wahlberg dog movie.Arthur the KingFocus Features’ comedic satire The American Society of Magical Negroes and Kristen Stewart-directed bodybuilding thriller A24Love lies bleeding.”
But the charts still belonged to the franchises, including “Dune: Part Two“, which came in a close second with $29.1 million in its third weekend. That’s just 37% less than last weekend. The company now has domestic sales of $205.3 million. The first film, released simultaneously in theaters and on streaming, grossed around $435 million worldwide, while Part Two is already bringing in nearly $500 million worldwide.
“Arthur the King” performed best among newcomers, coming in third with $7.5 million from 3,003 locations. The studio entered the weekend expecting something in the range of $8 million to $10 million. The low production costs and international advance sales should bring profits. Directed by Simon Cellan Jones and written by Michael Brandt, the film is based on the true story of an adventure racer who befriends a stray dog on a dangerous 435-mile trek in the Dominican Republic. Simu Liu plays one of Wahlberg’s teammates. With an A CinemaScore, the studio is hoping positive word of mouth will boost sales in the coming weeks.
“Love lies bleeding” opened in 1,362 locations for $2.5 million. Written and directed by Rose Glass (“Saint Maud ″), it’s a pulpy ’80s Western thriller about an isolated gym manager (Stewart) and a female bodybuilder (Katy O’Brian) who move through the city.
“The American Society of Magical Negroes” opened in 1,147 theaters and grossed an estimated $1.3 million. According to exit data, 52% of the opening weekend audience was Black. Written and directed by Kobi Libii, the film is a satire about a secret society of black people who aim to make life easier for white people. The film stars Justice Smith and David Alan Grier.
The first weekend after the Oscars “Poor things” added $2.3 million worldwide, bringing the total to $112.6 million.
Next weekend, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire hits theaters with proton packs and brand recognition.
“Without a newcomer dominating the market, the weekend is likely to be slow,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “Now we’re just waiting for ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ and ‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.’ That combination should get us out of March well.”
He added: “We’re going to have to have a lot of patience until we get to May and ‘The Fall Guy’ and the summer movie season. “But there are some great films on the way.”
Estimated ticket sales run Friday through Sunday in U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. The final domestic figures will be published on Monday.
1. “Kung Fu Panda 4,” $30 million.
2. “Dune: Part Two,” $29.1 million
3. “Arthur the King,” $7.5 million.
4. “Imaginary,” $5.6 million.
5. “Cabrini,” $2.8 million.
6. “Love Lies Bleeding,” $2.5 million.
7. “Bob Marley: One Love,” $2.3 million.
8. “One Life,” $1.7 million
9. “The American Society of Magical Negroes,” $1.3 million
10. “Ordinary Angels,” $1 million.