‘Downtown Abbey’ the class act at N. American box office
LOS ANGELES: With aristocratic elan, ‘Downton Abbey’ dismissed challenges from Brad Pitt’s ‘Ad Astra’ and Sylvester Stallone’s ‘Rambo: Last Blood’ to claim top box office spot in North America, industry figures showed Sunday.
Fans had waited eagerly for the movie follow-up of the global hit TV series tracking the dramas of life among a British upper-class family and the staff who serve them in their stately home.
With a plot built around a royal visit, the Washington Post review described the ‘Downton Abbey’ movie as ‘an overstuffed guilty pleasure’ and ‘eye and ear candy of the highest order: rich and delicious, but not especially nutritious.’
The film emerged top of the Exhibitor Relations rankings by a distance, with an estimated US$31 million in ticket sales over the weekend — a cut above ‘Ad Astra’, at US$19.2 million.
Pitt, who plays an astronaut sent on a dangerous mission at the edge of the solar system, made a 20-minute video call to the International Space Station (ISS) chatting to American astronaut Nick Hague as part of his movie’s promotion.
‘Rambo: Last Blood’ was a close third with US$19 million, as the three new releases knocked horror flick ‘IT Chapter Two’ off the top spot after a two-week reign, pushing it down to fourth with US$17.2 million ticket sales.
The new Jennifer Lopez movie ‘Hustlers’ — based on a true story about strippers who plot to steal from their wealthy clients in recession-hit New York — fell from second to fifth place, despite strong reviews.
J-Lo has won plaudits for her role with ‘Rolling Stone’ calling her ‘dazzling,’ ‘electrifying’ and Oscar-worthy.
Rounding out the weekend’s top 10 were:
• The Lion King
(US$2.5 million)
• Good Boys (US$2.5 million)
• Angel Has Fallen”
($2.4 million)
• Overcomer (US$1.5 million)
• Hobbs & Shaw
(US$1.5 million) — AFP