‘Superman’ triumphs once again at North American box office

[LOS ANGELES] The Man of Steel has staying power: Superman topped the North American box office for a second week running and surpassed the US$400 million mark worldwide, industry estimates showed on Sunday.

Riding largely positive reviews, the latest big-budget action film featuring the iconic superhero from Warner Bros and DC Studios earned US$57.3 million in the United States and Canada, Exhibitor Relations said.

That puts its North American take at US$235 million and its international sales at US$171 million – or US$406 million globally.

Jurassic World: Rebirth – the latest instalment in the blockbuster dinosaur saga – also held its ground in second place at US$23.4 million. Its worldwide total stands at US$647.2 million.

The Universal film, starring Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey and Mahershala Ali, takes viewers to an abandoned island research facility, where secrets – and genetically mutated dinosaurs – are lurking.

I Know What You Did Last Summer, a sequel to two 1990s slasher hits that bring back the franchise’s original stars Freddie Prinze Jr and Jennifer Love Hewitt, opened in third place at a disappointing US$13 million.

“This is another horror series returning after a long layoff, in this case after 27 years,” said industry analyst David A Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research.

“Generally, the layoffs don’t bother these films; in fact, they get stronger... that’s not happening here.”

Smurfs, the latest film featuring the adorable blue creatures and starring Rihanna as Smurfette, opened in a lacklustre fourth place with US$11 million in North American ticket sales.

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F1: The Movie, the Apple and Warner Bros flick starring Brad Pitt as a washed-up Formula 1 driver who gets one last shot at redemption, finished in fifth place at US$9.6 million.

“The current line-up in theatres is strong, with a broad selection of big titles including superheroes, action, monsters, horror and animation,” said Gross.

Superman will soon get a new superhero rival when Marvel’s hotly anticipated The Fantastic Four: First Steps starring Pedro Pascal hits theatres in the coming days.

Rounding out the top 10 were:

How to Train Your Dragon (US$5.4 million)

Eddington (US$4.3 million)

Elio (US$2 million)

Lilo & Stitch (US$1.5 million)

28 Years Later (US$1.3 million).