“Avengers: Endgame” finally yielded the top spot in North American box offices this weekend to the latest “John Wick” action film, but the Marvel Studios/Disney blockbuster edged closer to historic status as the all-time No. 1 grossing film.
“Avengers” took in an estimated domestic total of $29.4 million in its fourth weekend out, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations estimated Sunday, bringing its worldwide total to $2.61 billion, just shy of the $2.79 billion “Avatar” earned in 2009.
But in North America, it fell well behind Lionsgate’s new “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum,” which posted a strong $57 million for its opening three-day weekend.
The third “John Wick” movie again stars Keanu Reeves as a retired hitman, this time being chased by an army of killers after a $14 million contract is put on his head. The film also stars Halle Berry, Laurence Fishburne, Ian McShane and Anjelica Huston.
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In third, down one spot from last weekend, was Warner Bros.’ family-friendly “Pokemon: Detective Pikachu,” at $24.8 million. Based on a Nintendo video game and subsequent anime series, it has the animated title character (voiced by Ryan Reynolds) teaming up with a young boy (Justice Smith, in a live-action role) to seek the boy’s missing father.
“A Dog’s Journey” from Universal placed fourth, at $8 million.
Based on a novel of the same name, it stars Dennis Quaid and Josh Gad in the story of a dog that is repeatedly reincarnated, each time to protect someone close to it — a plot device that works for some animal lovers but which critics have called “emotionally manipulative” and “insufferable.”
The movie is a follow-up to 2017’s “A Dog’s Purpose.”
In fifth was “The Hustle” from United Artists, at $6.1 million. The female-driven revamp of “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” stars Rebel Wilson and Anne Hathaway as two con-women trying to scam an internet millionaire.
Rounding out the weekend’s top 10 were:
“The Intruder” ($4 million)
“Long Shot” ($3.4 million)
“The Sun Is Also a Star” ($2.6 million)
“Poms” ($2.1 million)
“UglyDolls” ($1.6 million)
AFP