Box office report: 'Beauty and the Beast' doubles 'Power Rangers' weekend gross
As expected, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast roars atop the weekend box office for the second week in a row, bounding past a wide crop of newcomers as the month of March sets a new industry standard in record time.
The Bill Condon-directed fantasy falls 48.3 percent for a sophomore finish of $90.4 million, bringing its North American total to $319 million in a mere 10 days. After breaking the March opening weekend record last week, Beauty and the Beast goes on to score the fourth largest 10-day gross of all time this weekend in addition to posting the fourth largest second weekend tally of all time.
Overseas, Beauty and the Beast adds $119.2 million after opening in territories like France, Australia, and Argentina, cementing the film’s nearly $700 million global total to date. So far this year, Disney has amassed an estimated $1.3 billion globally.
At a distant second is Lionsgate’s Power Rangers reboot, which slightly exceeds industry forecasts with a healthy $40.3 million. The expensive $100 million blockbuster should earn back its production budget in the U.S., though its profitability will be determined by how well it performs on the international market. Tentpole spectacles tend to do well overseas - particularly in Asia - so the film’s promising domestic launch is only a small start to what could be a long life on screens worldwide in the weeks ahead.
Though they’re technically rivals in the box office arena, the impressive weekend hauls of both Power Rangers and Beauty and the Beast have helped domestic totals push past the $1 billion mark for March alone, making it the month’s best showing in history, according to comScore.
Falling one spot to No. 3 is the Legendary/Warner Bros. actioner Kong: Skull Island, which muscles a further $14.7 million over its third weekend in wide release. The franchise flick has made $133.8 million in the U.S. and Canada thus far, with another $258.9 million pouring in from overseas for a global total of $392.7 million and counting.
Coming in at No. 4 is the heavily buzzed Sony/Skydance thriller Life, which world-premiered at SXSW to solid critical reviews earlier this month. The $58 million production meets modest industry expectations over a competitive weekend through Sunday, earning $12.5 million - a relatively low number given its star power (Ryan Reynolds and Jake Gyllenhaal star), intriguing alien-centric premise, and effective marketing campaign.
Outside the top five, Warner Bros.’ kitschy contemporary adaptation of the beloved television series CHiPs bows with $7.7 million - a lukewarm start for director-writer-star Dax Shepard’s latest filmmaking effort, which was reportedly produced on a budget of around $25 million.
Elsewhere, the comparatively low-profile basketball drama Slamma Jamma posts a decent $1.7 million after playing at 502 sites over the weekend. At 310 locations, the Woody Harrelson/Laura Dern vehicle Wilson - helmed by The Skeleton Twins director Craig Johnson - also bows with a soft estimated $336,227, averaging approximately $1,085 per theater.
Per comScore, overall box office is up around 5.5 percent from the same frame last year. Check out the March 24-26 weekend box office actuals below.
1 Beauty and the Beast $90.4 million
2 Power Rangers $40.3 million
3 Kong: Skull Island $14.7 million
4 Life $12.5 million
5 Logan $10.3 million
6 Get Out $8.9 million
7 CHiPs $7.7 million
8 The Shack $3.9 million
9 The LEGO Batman Movie $2.1 million
10 The Belko Experiment $1.9 million
