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LOS ANGELES – Computer-animated martial arts film 'Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero', the 21st in the Japanese franchise, seized control of the North American box office this weekend with an estimated take of US$20.1 million (about RM90.11 million), industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported on Sunday.
That impressive result for the film from Crunchyroll – which called it the best global opening ever for an anime movie – proved a bright spot in a tepid August, easily outshining the US$11.6 million take of another new release, Universal's 'Beast'.
"This is another outstanding Crunchyroll anime opening," said analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research. He said Crunchyroll, 95% owned by Sony, now "dominates the genre."
Gross rated 'Beast', meantime, as having only a "fair opening" for the Friday-through-Sunday period – at least "for an action-adventure film featuring a beast."
The beast, in this case, is a huge rogue lion that pursues a recently widowed man (Idris Elba) and his daughters when they go on safari. Iceland's Baltasar Kormakur directs.
Sony's action-thriller 'Bullet Train', which topped the box office the last two weekends, slid to third at US$8 million. Brad Pitt plays a paid assassin on a train seemingly loaded with them.
In fourth was the still high-flying 'Top Gun: Maverick', which took in a substantial US$5.9 million in its 13th week out. The Tom Cruise vehicle has pulled in US$683 million domestically and US$703 million overseas.
And in fifth, down three spots from last weekend, was Warner Bros.'s animation 'DC League of Super-Pets', at US$5.8 million.
August is always slow at the box office, "but with no big releases during the last two weeks, business has dropped more than normal, to roughly -40% below August 2019," Gross said, "and that's how it will continue until October."
Rounding out the weekend's top 10 were:
'Thor: Love and Thunder' (US$4 million)
'Nope' (US$3.6 million)
'Minions: The Rise of Gru' (US$3.5 million)
'Where the Crawdads Sing' (US$3.2 million)
'Bodies Bodies Bodies' (US$2.4 million) – AFP, August 22, 2022
