Hitman bumps off Logan to claim North American box-office lead
LOS ANGELES – Two new movies – The Hitman’s Bodyguard and Logan Lucky – soared to the top three in North American theaters this weekend, with Logan scoring well with critics, but Hitman far luckier in ticket sales.
Lionsgate’s Hitman pulled in an estimated $21.6 million to lead the three-day weekend, according to industry Web site Exhibitor Relations. That was considered a respectable take on what has been the lowest-grossing weekend of the year.
The film tells the story of a famous bodyguard (Ryan Reynolds) hired to protect a notorious hitman (Samuel L. Jackson) who is about to testify in a high-profile trial.
Salma Hayek, as Jackson’s formidable wife, adds to the movie’s star power, but critics gave it an unimpressive 39% rating on RottenTomatoes.com.
Steven Soderbergh’s Logan came in third in its first week out – after Warner Bros.’s Annabelle: Creation – but with ticket sales of just $8.1 million.
Critics, however, loved Soderbergh’s first film since his self-proclaimed retirement four years ago, giving it a 93% rating.
The Bleecker Street production stars Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, and Riley Keough in an unconventional heist comedy, with a sort of dysfunctional Oceans 11-style team planning a huge robbery at a NASCAR race.
The relatively low-budget Annabelle continued to pull in viewers, slipping slightly from last week’s No. 1 opening to take in $15.5 million.
The horror flick, starring Stephanie Sigman, Talitha Bateman, Miranda Otto, and Anthony LaPaglia, is part of the Conjuring franchise, which has now grossed more than $1 billion worldwide.
Warner Bros.’s war film Dunkirk remained a strong performer, placing fourth with sales of $6.7 million. The movie depicts the heroic 1940 evacuation of hundreds of thousands of Allied troops from Northern France.
And in fifth place was Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature from Open Road Films, with sales of $5.1 million. The animated adventure tells the story of a group of animals trying to save their home from the bulldozer.
Overall, it has been a tough season for the studios: summer ticket sales are about 13% behind last summer, according to ComScore.
Rounding out the top 10 were: The Emoji Movie ($4.4 million); Spider-Man: Homecoming ($4.3 million); Girls Trip ($3.8 million); The Dark Tower ($3.7 million); and, Wind River ($3 million). – AFP
