The weekend box office in North American theaters was dominated by the new sci-fi horror film “Alien: Romulus,” showcasing the franchise’s enduring ability to attract large audiences, analysts revealed on Sunday.
With an estimated earning of $41.5 million for the Friday-through-Sunday frame, the latest entry in the series that began with Ridley Scott’s “Alien” in 1979, exceeded expectations, according to industry watcher Exhibitor Relations.
David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research described this opening as “an excellent start for a late-episode horror sequel.”
“Romulus,” directed by Uruguayan filmmaker Fede Alvarez, narrates the tale of space colonists who stumble upon a terrifying alien that feeds on faces while exploring an abandoned space station.
The film stars Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, and Spike Fearn.
The strong performance of “Alien: Romulus” knocked Marvel’s superhero comedy “Deadpool & Wolverine” off the top spot, pushing it to second place with $29 million in its fourth weekend. The movie features Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool and Hugh Jackman as Wolverine.
Sony’s dramatic romance “It Ends With Us,” based on the Colleen Hoover novel, dropped to third place with $24 million, following a high-profile dispute between lead actors Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni.
Universal and Amblin Entertainment’s weather thriller “Twisters” grabbed the fourth spot with $9.8 million, starring Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell.
The 15th-anniversary re-release of the stop-motion classic “Coraline” from Focus Features secured fifth place with $8.4 million, adapted from the Neil Gaiman novella about a young girl discovering an alternate universe.
Analyst Gross highlighted the success of summer sequels like “Romulus,” “Twisters,” and “Deadpool,” emphasizing the positive impact they have on the film industry by providing job opportunities and financial stability for filmmakers to explore new creative ventures.
The rest of the top 10 rankings included:
“Despicable Me 4” ($6 million)
“Trap” ($3.4 million)
“Inside Out 2” ($3.2 million)
“Borderlands” ($2.4 million)
“Stree 2” ($2.3 million)
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