LOS ANGELES, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Universal's action thriller film "Nobody" took the top spot at the North American box office this weekend as Warner Bros. and Legendary's monster film "Godzilla vs. Kong" had a pandemic-best international opening for Hollywood.
According to studio figures collected by measurement firm Comscore, "Nobody" took in an estimated 6.7 million U.S. dollars from 2,460 theaters between Friday and Sunday in its debut in North America.
Directed by Ilya Naishuller and starring Bob Odenkirk, the film follows an underestimated and overlooked dad and husband who helps a woman being harassed by several goons on a bus, only to become the target of a vengeful drug lord.
The film received generally positive reviews from critics, holding an approval rating of 79 percent based on 155 reviews to date on review-aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes.
But the big news for Hollywood this weekend is the robust performance of "Godzilla vs. Kong" in international markets, especially in China.
Comscore data showed that the film is the No. 1 at the global box office, enjoying an outstanding global opening weekend of 121.8 million dollars from 38 overseas markets. It's the best worldwide debut for any Hollywood movie since the COVID-19 pandemic began last year.
The bulk of the film's overseas box office was from China. According to the box office data compiled by Maoyan, a Chinese movie-ticketing and film data platform, "Godzilla vs. Kong" earned more than 460 million yuan (around 70.3 million dollars) after three days of launch in the Chinese mainland.
"Godzilla vs. Kong" is going to open in North America on March 31.
Disney's animated action-adventure film "Raya and the Last Dragon" came in the second with 3.5 million dollars from 2,212 locations in its fourth weekend for a North American cume of 28.38 million dollars.
Directed by Don Hall and Carlos Lopez Estrada and inspired by Southeast Asian culture and set in the fantasy land of Kumundra, the film follows a young girl who sets off on a perilous journey to find the legendary last dragon to help unite her fractured land and save her divided people from an ancient evil force that threatens them all.
"Raya and the Last Dragon" features a predominantly Asian American voice cast led by Kelly Marie Tran and Awkwafina.
In the third place, Warner Bros.' animated film "Tom and Jerry" brought in 2.51 million dollars from 2,464 locations in its fifth weekend, pushing its North American total to 37.06 million dollars.
Directed by Tim Story, the film based on the iconic cartoon characters is an eye-popping blend of classic animation and live action. The cat and mouse battle flares up again when Jerry moves into New York City's finest hotel on the eve of "the wedding of the century," forcing the event's desperate planner to hire Tom to get rid of him.
Lionsgate's sci-fi film "Chaos Walking" landed in the fourth place with 1.18 million dollars from 2,036 locations in its fourth weekend for a North American total of 11.46 million dollars.
Directed by Doug Liman and starring Daisy Ridley and Tom Holland, the film follows a young man who lives in a dystopian world where there are no women and all living creatures can hear each other's thoughts in a stream of images, words and sounds called "Noise."
Roadside Attractions and Lionsgate's historical drama film "The Courier" finished the fifth with 1.04 million dollars from 1,641 locations in its second weekend. The film has grossed 3.48 million dollars in North America to date.
Directed by Dominic Cooke and starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel Brosnahan and Merab Ninidze, the film tells the true story of an unassuming British businessman who helped the United Kingdom's MI-6 penetrate the Soviet nuclear program in an effort to provide crucial intelligence needed to prevent a nuclear confrontation and defuse the Cuban Missile Crisis. Enditem
