Ralph Breaks the Internet, Creed II are U.S. Thanksgiving box office hits

LOS ANGELES — Thanksgiving movie audiences stuck with the equivalent of grandma’s green beans almondine — the tried and true. A well-reviewed sequel from Walt Disney Animation, “Ralph Breaks the Internet,” sold the most tickets, followed by “Creed II,” the eighth film in the “Rocky” series.

But original offerings, including a newfangled “Robin Hood” and the political drama “The Front Runner,” were scraped into the garbage disposal.

“Ralph Breaks the Internet,” with a voice cast led by John C. Reilly and Sarah Silverman, collected an estimated $55.7 million at North American theaters over the weekend, for a total of $84.5 million since arriving Wednesday, according to Comscore. Its series predecessor, “Wreck-It Ralph,” took in $49 million over its first three days in theaters in early November 2012, or about $55 million after adjusting for inflation.

“Ralph Breaks the Internet,” which cost Disney at least $300 million to make and market, collected an additional $41.5 million in a handful of foreign countries, including China.

“Creed II,” which also received mostly favorable reviews, took in a strong $35.3 million between Friday and Sunday in the United States and Canada, for a total of $55.8 million since arriving Wednesday — 22 per cent above the Thanksgiving 2015 debut of “Creed,” after adjusting for inflation.

Michael B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone reprise their roles in “Creed II,” which cost roughly $100 million to make and market and involved multiple studios, including Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Annapurna and Warner Bros. “Creed II” will start to arrive in wide overseas release this week.

It was not a happy holiday for Lionsgate, which released “Robin Hood” on 2,827 screens in North America. Audiences seemed to agree with critics, who largely reviled this updated version of the classic story: Ticket sales added up to about $9.1 million between Friday and Sunday, for a total of $14.2 million since arriving Wednesday. Lionsgate spent about $100 million (not including marketing costs) to make “Robin Hood,” which was produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and a partner, Jennifer Davisson. Lionsgate recouped some of its investment by selling overseas distribution rights.

While still playing in relatively limited release — 807 locations — ahead of a planned wider rollout next weekend, “The Front Runner” (Sony) can be declared a major boxoffice misfire.

The film, which received mixed reviews and stars Hugh Jackman as 1988 presidential contender Gary Hart, took in about $885,000 over the fiveday Thanksgiving period. “The Front Runner” was independently financed by Bron Studios of Canada and Creative Wealth Media.