Hollywood movies still struggled to make a profit even as cinemas gradually reopened around the world.
Hollywood may still see fewer revenues this year, even with optimism with the COVID-19 vaccine rollout and the gradual reopening of cinemas around the world.
Disney's "Raya and the Last Dragon," a computer-animated fantasy adventure, opened to $8.6 million from 2,045 screens.
That failed to match the impressive (for a pandemic) debut of "Tom & Jerry," which earned $14.1 million last weekend, providing a ray of hope to the long-suffering exhibition sector.
However, "Raya and the Last Dragon” was also released to Disney Plus subscribers for a $30 fee, enabling it to to capture the top spot on domestic box office charts.
Globally, "Raya" earned $26 million with China and Russia providing the largest contributions with $8.4 million and $2.8 million, respectively.
Meanwhile,, Warner Bros.' "Tom & Jerry" picked up $6.6 million domestically, pushing its haul to $23 million. The film is also streaming on HBO Max. The animated film earned $11.6 million globally from 36 markets, pushing its worldwide gross to $57.3 million.
Lionsgate's "Chaos Walking," an oft-delayed and critically maligned fantasy adventure with Tom Holland and Daisy Ridley, grossed an anemic $3.8 million for a third-place finish. Based on a series of popular sci-fi novels, the film cost a reported $100 million to make, which is bad news for the studio given the paltry opening. It was originally scheduled to debut in March 2019, before it underwent reshoots.
The top five was rounded out by Focus Features' "Boogie," a drama about a Queens basketball phenom that was written and directed by chef and author Eddie Huang, as well as by Dreamworks Animation's "The Croods: A New Age." "Boogie" grossed $1.2 million, while the "Croods" sequel picked up $780,000 to push its domestic gross to $53.6 million. "The Croods: A New Age" has grossed $157.7 million worldwide since opening last fall. (ONT)