With $50 million debut, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ is no poor boy

NEW YORK >> The Freddie Mercury biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody” and 20th Century Fox are — for now, at least — champions of the world.

“Bohemian Rhapsody,” starring Rami Malek as the late Queen frontman, shrugged off production troubles and mediocre reviews to debut with $50 million in weekend ticket sales in U.S. and Canada, and another $72.5 million internationally, according to studio estimates Sunday. That was well beyond expectations, which had pegged the film closer to $35-40 million in its opening weekend.

But audiences rushed to theaters to see the widely praised performance by Malek, the “Mr. Robot” star, and to hear Queen’s foot-stomping anthems like “We are the Champions,” “Another One Bites the Dust” and the operatic title song. The movie, which Bryan Singer directed before being replaced by Dexter Fletcher, at times has an almost concert-like feel, including a lengthy re-creation of the band’s 1985 Live Aid performance.

“It really is a celebration of Queen and their music, and I think we did a really good job of letting people know that that’s what this is,” said Chris Aronson, distribution chief for Fox.

In soaring to No. 1, the Fox release trounced one from Disney, which will soon own the studio. Despite a production budget of $125 million, the Walt Disney Co.’s lavish, big-budget “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” opened with just $20 million. Disney is set to merge with Fox in the coming months, effectively ending the 103-year-old Fox, one of Hollywood’s six major studios.

“We were hoping for a stronger start, but we do think it’s a film that people will find as we head into the holidays,” said Cathleen Taff, head of theatrical distribution for Disney.

Though Disney’s record of success is the envy of Hollywood, “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” marks the studio’s third misfire this year following the underperforming “A Wrinkle in Time” and “Solo.” The studio’s