NEW YORK (AP) – Neither Pixar nor the zombie were enough to defeat “How to Train a Dragon” from the first slot in the North American box office over the weekend.
The Universal Pictures Live Action Remake brought in $37 million ticket sales over the second weekend despite a fairly new release of “Elio” and “28 Years After.” , Studio estimates, Sunday. “How to Train Your Dragon” is rapidly accumulating $358.2 million worldwide.
Six years after the last entry, director Dean Deblois’s “How to Train Your Dragon” proves a powerful return to the DreamWorks animation franchise. The sequel is already in work on a $150 million production. This is reworking the 2010 animated story about a Viking boy and his dragon.
Pixar’s “Elio” had an especially tough weekend. Walt Disney Co. Animation Studio frequently unveiled some of its biggest titles in June, including “Car,” “Wall-E,” and “Toy Story 4.” But “Elio,” a science fiction adventure about a boy dreaming of meeting an alien, has chopped the low-key $21 million, Pixar’s lowest opening ever.
“This is a weak opening for a new Pixar movie,” said David A. Gross, who runs the film consulting firm franchisee. “These are solid numbers for another original animation film, but this is Pixar, and by Pixar’s notable standards, the opening is well below average.”
Originally scheduled to be released in early 2024, Elio had a bumpy path to the screen. Co-director of “Coco” – Adrian Morina was replaced mid-production by Domaine Sy (“Red”) and Madeline Sharafian. Back at Disney’s D23 Conference in 2022, American Ferrera appeared to be announcing her role as Elio’s mother, but the character is also absent from the improved film.
Disney and Pixar spent at least $150 million to create “Elio,” which wasn’t much better internationally than North America. Pixar came out of the pandemic before stabilizing its performance with 2023’s “Elemental” ($496.4 million worldwide) and 2024’s “Inside Out 2” ($1.7 billion).
“Elemental” was Pixar’s previously lowest-grossing film, which launched for $29.6 million. In the next few weeks, it raised nearly $500 million at the box office. The company’s first film, “Toy Story,” opened in 1995 for $29.1 million, or $60 when adjusted for inflation. It is still unclear whether “A” from “Elio’s” decent reviews and Cinemascore viewers can repeat the “Elemental’s” trajectory.
With most schools in the summer holidays, competition for family audiences was tough. Another live-action remake, Disney’s own “Lilo & Stitch,” continued to attract young movie fans. It won $9.7 million in its fifth weekend, increasing its global tally to $910 million. .
“28 Years After” marked the return of another, much more Gorier franchise. Director Danny Boyle reunited with screenwriter Alex Garland to resume his pandemic apocalypse thriller 25 years after “28 Days Later” and 18 years after the sequel “28 Weeks Later.”
The Sony Pictures release opened for $30 million. That was enough to give Boyle, the filmmaker for “Slumdog Millionaire” and “Trainspotting,” the biggest opening weekend of his career. The film, which costs $60 million, moves towards nearly 30 years after the outbreak of the so-called anger virus, is an adult story about the 12-year-old (Alfie Williams) coming out of the family’s sheltered village. Co-stars of Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer and Ralph Fiennes.
It’s mixed with audience reactions (“B” cinema score), but the reviews are good for “28 years later” (90% fresh with rotten tomatoes 28 years later). Boyle is increasing plans for the zombie franchise. This will see the release of “Temple of the Bones 28 Years After” from manager Nia Dacosta next year.
“28 Years Age” added another $30 million to 59 overseas markets.
After a strong start last weekend at $12 million, the A24 “materialist” was held well at $5.8 million over the second weekend. The romantic drama by author-director Celine Song and the starring roles of Dakota Johnson, Pedro Pascal and Chris Evans have raised $24 million so far.
The next weekend, both Apple and Warner Bros.’s “F1” and the “F1” where Universal’s “Megan 2.0” will be released in cinemas, so it should be competitive in cinemas as well.
Top 10 films by domestic box office revenue
According to ComScore, the list is a factor in estimated ticket sales from Friday to Sunday in US and Canadian theatres, as the final domestic figures were released on Monday.
1. “How to Train a Dragon” $37 million.
2. “28 years from now,” $30 million.
3. “Elio,” $21 million.
4. “Lilo & Stitch” $9.7 million.
5. “Mission: Impossible – Final Calculation,” $6.6 million.
6. “Materialist,” $5.8 million.
7. “Ballerina,” $4.5 million.
8. “Karate Kid: Legend,” $2.4 million.
9. “Final Destination: Pedigree,” $1.9 million.
10. “Kuberaa” $1.7 million.
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