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‘The Nun’ Keeps ‘Conjuring’ Series Alive in $53.5 Million Debut

‘The Nun’ Keeps ‘Conjuring’ Series Alive in $53.5 Million Debut

(Bloomberg) -- “The Nun,” a fresh horror spinoff from “The Conjuring” series, opened as the No. 1 film in North America, outdrawing two other wide releases and delivering a box-office jolt to AT&T Inc.’s Warner Bros. studio.

Despite mostly negative reviews, the film caught on with fans of the series and beat forecasts by collecting $53.8 million this weekend in U.S. and Canadian theaters, ComScore Inc. said Monday. That was enough to topple the previous leader “Crazy Rich Asians,” which fell to third place. “Peppermint,” from STX Entertainment, opened in second place.

“The Nun” adds to a strong stretch for Warner Bros., whose parent company was acquired by AT&T this year. Thanks to “Crazy Rich Asians” and “The Meg,” the studio has held the No. 1 spot for five straight weekends. Warner Bros. also has a few more potential hits to come this year with the awards contender “A Star is Born,” another “Fantastic Beasts” movie and “Aquaman.”

“The Nun” harks back to a demonic character who first appeared in “The Conjuring 2” in 2016. In the new movie, a novitiate played by Taissa Farmiga and a priest played by Demián Bichir are sent by the Vatican to investigate the suicide of a young nun in Romania.

‘The Nun’ Keeps ‘Conjuring’ Series Alive in $53.5 Million Debut

The $22 million production scored recommendations from just 36 percent of critics, according to RottenTomatoes.com, a website that aggregates reviews. It was expected to collect $45 million in its first weekend, topping the $42 million for the original “The Conjuring” in 2013 and marking the biggest opening for the franchise, according to Box Office Mojo. Another untitled “Conjuring” movie is lined up for 2019.

‘The Nun’ Keeps ‘Conjuring’ Series Alive in $53.5 Million Debut

“Peppermint” opened with weekend sales of $13.4 million, in line with the projection from Box Office Pro. Jennifer Garner stars as a young mother, out for revenge after waking from a coma to find her husband and child have been murdered. The R-rated feature, the third release from STX Entertainment in the past four weeks, failed to inspire critics. Just 17 percent recommended the movie.

‘The Nun’ Keeps ‘Conjuring’ Series Alive in $53.5 Million Debut

To contact the reporter on this story: Anousha Sakoui in Los Angeles at asakoui@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net, Rob Golum, Kevin Miller

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