new film “Black Adam” blew away all competition this weekend, leading the North American box office with an estimated take of $67 million, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported Sunday. A superhero origin story spun off from 2019’s “Shazam,” “Black Adam” stars Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as the titular villain, a former slave endowed with miraculous powers by ancient Egyptian gods.
“As a spinoff, this is a strong opening,” David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research said, adding that it was a “positive and steady step forward for DC Comics,” the generator of many superhero films.
In a distant second was another new release, Universal’s “Ticket to Paradise,” at $16.3 million for the Friday-through-Sunday period. Released earlier abroad, it has already taken in $80 million outside North America.
“This is a very good domestic opening for a romantic comedy,” Gross said. It stars two of Hollywood’s biggest stars, George Clooney and Julia Roberts, as a bickering, divorced couple who fly to Hawaii to try to sabotage their daughter’s wedding.
With Halloween approaching, the next two films were both horror specials. Paramount’s “Smile” dropped one spot from last weekend to third, taking in $8.4 million. Sosie Bacon plays a therapist whose grasp on reality is shaken by a horrifying event. Next was Universal’s blood-soaked “Halloween Ends,” which dropped sharply from last weekend’s box-office-topping $41.3 million to just $8 million. — AFP
