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Sci-Fi Flick ‘Alita’ Unexpectedly Topples ‘Lego’ at Box Office

Sci-Fi Flick ‘Alita’ Unexpectedly Topples ‘Lego’ at Box Office

(Bloomberg) -- The futuristic science-fiction film “Alita: Battle Angel” far surpassed estimates to capture top position at the weekend box office, unexpectedly knocking off “The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part” after just a week in another sign the animated sequel is off to a rocky start.

Sci-Fi Flick ‘Alita’ Unexpectedly Topples ‘Lego’ at Box Office

“Alita,” a 20th Century Fox movie produced by James Cameron of “Titanic” fame and starring Rosa Salazar and Christoph Waltz, brought in $33.5 million in the U.S. and Canada from Friday through Monday, researcher Comscore Inc. said. That trounced the $26.5 million estimate from Box Office Mojo and exceeded the $27.8 million total for the Lego sequel.

Sci-Fi Flick ‘Alita’ Unexpectedly Topples ‘Lego’ at Box Office

Key Insights

  • The Lego movie’s performance has raised concerns about the franchise -- a would-be growth driver for AT&T Inc.’s Warner Bros. Its debut weekend generated far less revenue than predicted, even after favorable reviews.
  • More broadly, the North American movie industry has gotten off to a slow start this year -- and the strong showing of “Black Panther” in February 2018 will probably make this month look especially anemic in comparison.
  • Among other newcomers, the satirical comedy “Isn’t It Romantic” starring Rebel Wilson placed third with $16.6 million, and horror movie “Happy Death Day 2U” came in fifth place with $11 million, little more than half the estimate from Box Office Mojo.
Sci-Fi Flick ‘Alita’ Unexpectedly Topples ‘Lego’ at Box Office
Sci-Fi Flick ‘Alita’ Unexpectedly Topples ‘Lego’ at Box Office




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To contact the reporter on this story: Nick Turner in Los Angeles at nturner7@bloomberg.net

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

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