‘Crazy Rich Asians’ Spurs Strong Labor Day Theater Sales

(Bloomberg) -- “Crazy Rich Asians” led the North American box office for a third straight weekend, making the U.S. Labor Day one of the strongest in years, while the latest Tom Cruise action blockbuster opened big in China.

The Warner Bros. romantic comedy collected $28.6 million in the U.S and Canada for the four-day weekend, ComScore Inc. said in an email Tuesday. Warner Bros.’ “The Meg” ranked second domestically, taking in $13.8 million.

Paramount’s “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” placed third with $9.3 million, and led the global box office with $96.1 million as of Sunday, ComScore said. “Operation Finale,” about the hunt for notorious Nazi Adolf Eichmann, came in fourth place for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer with $7.9 million. “Kin,” a new science-fiction film from Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., failed to land in the top 10.

Fallout, the sixth installment of the Mission Impossible franchise, was propelled to the top of the worldwide box office with a “massive $77.3 million debut in China,” ComScore said.

The combination of new movies and the strength of “Crazy Rich Asians” was expected to bolster sales for the final weekend of the summer movie season. Through the extended weekend, the top 10 movies brought in an estimated $96 million, according to ComScore. That would be more than 50 percent above a year earlier, when the biggest films collected $61.7 million.

“Crazy Rich Asians” was forecast to collect about $30 million from Friday to Monday, the estimate of Box Office Mojo. Its worldwide total reached $137 million. An adaptation of a best-selling novel about Singapore’s rich and elite, the movie is in its third week atop the North American box office and has been celebrated for opening the door to more diversity in Hollywood.

‘Searching’

In another film with an Asian actor in the lead role, the well-reviewed “Searching” from Sony Pictures expanded to more theaters this weekend and jumped to fifth place with sales of $7.6 million. The film features John Cho as a father who uses social media to find his daughter. It was forecast by Box Office Mojo to take in about $7 million over the four days. RottenTomatoes.com said 90 percent of critics recommended the film.

“Operation Finale,” which opened earlier in the week, matched Box Office Mojo’s forecast of $7.5 million to $8 million, and brought in $7.9 million according to ComScore. The film stars Ben Kingsley as Eichmann, the mastermind of the Holocaust, and follows the Israeli effort to capture him and put him on trial. More than half of critics recommended the movie, which cost about $24 million to make.

“Kin” opened with weekend sales of $3.87 million, failing to make the top 10. Only 33 percent of critics recommended the picture, in which a young boy uses a weapon of unknown origin to help his brother battle vengeful criminals. Box Office Pro was projecting sales of $4 million through the Monday holiday.

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, Alex Wayne, Drew Armstrong

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