Beauty And The Beast Remain Power Couple Of The Weekend Box Office
It doesn't look like the tale as old as time is yet growing old with film-goers, as the Bill Condon-directed adaptation reigned supreme once more in the box office this weekend.
Starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens in the eponymous roles, the live-action Beauty and the Beast circled for its first round following its March 17 debut, continuing on its record-shattering rampage. The Disney darling saw an $88 million pull in domestic theaters this weekend, bringing its total revenue to a staggering $316 million in the States and inching toward $700 million internationally. Though it took a 49-percent dip from its opening, the flick has boomed to secure itself as the fourth-largest sophomore outing and the fourth-biggest 10-day box office total of all time (via The Hollywood Reporter).
Many have speculated that if the film continues at the rate its going, it may very well end up amongst the highest-grossing live-action Disney movies in history. Beauty and the Beast seems to have stayed true to its name regarding revenue: a beautiful film that's nabbed beastly sales numbers.
Coming in second is Haim Saban's Power Rangers, the slightly gritty reboot of the original series that took the '90s television scene by storm. The film unfortunately didn't hold a flame to its first-place rival, as it grossed just $40.5 million in its first weekend in theaters. A strong turnout amongst 20-somethings who know and love the franchise helped push Power Rangers toward success, something that Lionsgate executives knew to capitalize upon.
"We knew that if this was going to work for us, we would need to get older audiences and not just kids because of the nostalgia factor," David Spitz, distribution chief at Lionsgate, said. "It is such a beloved property."
Of course, both time and global sales will help to determine if Power Rangers is the start of a refreshed new franchise.
The third spot goes to a familiar face: the Brie Larson and Tom Hiddleston-led Kong: Skull Island. Its third weekend in the box office, the monster flick took home a respectable $14.4 million domestically.
Another new kid on the block was the sci-fi horror film Life. Debuting this weekend, the Ryan Reynolds and Jake Gyllenhaal-helmed thriller saw just $12.6 million, but against Sony's sleek $58 million budget, Life will likely be profitable before it exits theaters in the coming weeks.
The dark not-so-superhero film Logan and Get Out, Jordan Peele's horror that took both audiences and critics by surprise, hit spots five and six, respectively. Rounding out the top 10 list was a mix of first-timers and old favorites. CHiPs, the comedy revival featuring Dax Shepard and Michael Pena, saw its first weekend at the box office. Unfortunately, the film totally bombed, bringing in a meager $7.6 million.
Faith-based flick The Shack sat in spot eight with $3.7 million, with The LEGO Batman Movie ($1.9 million) and the James Gunn-penned The Belko Experiment ($1.8 million) filling out the bottom two slots.
With ticket sales this high, we're certain most of you have already caught Disney's latest live-action adaptation. What you might not have seen, however, are all the hidden references tucked inside. Check out the Easter eggs you totally missed in Beauty and the Beast.