Stars are aligning for No. 1 ‘Moana’
Animated ocean adventure follows path of ‘Frozen’
Moana is queen of the box office once again.
Disney’s South Pacific-set adventure sailed to an easy No. 1 in its second weekend with $28.4 million, bringing its total to $119.9 million, according to studio estimates from tracking firm comScore.
The animated film features the voices of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and newcomer Auli’i Cravalho, along with original music co-written by Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Its box office performance mirrors that of Disney’s musical phenomenon Frozen, which brought in $31.6 million its second weekend in December 2013 on its way to $400.7 million. “Moana has truly struck an emotional chord with audiences and at this point is giving Frozen a run for its money,” says Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for comScore.
The movie has “benefited from a combination of Dwayne Johnson’s considerable star power, an irresistible concept, a great marketing campaign and a perfect release date.” In second place, Harry Potter spinoff Fantastic Beasts and
Where to Find Them continued to work magic with $18.5 million for a healthy $183.5 million in just three weeks. The PG-13 fantasy film — the first in a planned five-movie franchise — is written by Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling and stars Eddie Redmayne as a “magizoologist” in 1920s New York City.
Sci-fi drama Arrival continued to be a strong word-of-mouth hit in its fourth weekend, dropping just 36% for third place and $7.3 million ($73.1 million total). The awards hopeful stars Amy Adams as a linguist tasked with talking to aliens and is bolstered by strong reviews (93% positive from critics on aggregate review site RottenTomatoes.com).
“Arrival has maintained that ‘must-see’ vibe that’s reminiscent of its sci-fi brethren The Martian and Gravity,” Dergarabedian says. “Social media sentiment has remained high and is contributing to a level of continued interest that’s keeping the film in the top five.”
At No. 4, Brad Pitt’s Allied had an OK hold with $7.1 million, dropping 44% after opening over Thanksgiving.
But with only $28.9 million total, Robert Zemeckis’ World War II-era spy drama still has a long way to go to recoup its $85 million budget. Disney/Marvel’s Doctor
Strange rounds out the top five with $6.5 million for fifth place, amassing $215.3 million in five weeks. The superhero blockbuster starring Benedict Cumberbatch has now tallied $635 million worldwide.
In limited release, Jackie stunned with $275,000 in five theaters in New York and Los Angeles and a per-screen average of $55,000. The awards hopeful, starring Natalie Portman as former first lady Jackie Kennedy, opens in Washington, San Francisco, Boston and Phoenix next weekend.
Final numbers are out Monday.