NewzNEW YORK (AP) — Seven years after becoming the second-highest grossing film ever, “Avengers: Endgame” returned to the No. 1 spot at the box office in a victory lap for Marvel and an appetizer for the upcoming blockbuster “Avengers: Doomsday.” The rerelease grossed $26 million over the weekend and another $60 million overseas, according to studio estimates Sunday. The film, which grossed $2.8 billion in 2019, was put back into theaters with several new end-credits scenes and an introductory thank you to fans from Robert Downey Jr.
Among rereleases, only the 1997 release of “Star Wars: A New Hope” ($35.9 million) and the 2011 repeat of “The Lion King” ($30.2 million) have opened higher than “Endgame” in domestic cinemas. Hollywood has increasingly turned to rereleases in recent years to take advantage of holes in the release schedule. rerun, billed as “Endgame: Encore,” came out on top on an especially crowded weekend in theaters.
Three well-reviewed new releases — A24’s “Primetime,” with Robert Pattinson; Paramount Pictures’ “Heart of the Beast,” with Brad Pitt; and Universal Pictures’ “Forgotten Island” — all landed in theaters. Second place, though, went to Zach Cregger’s reboot of “Resident Evil.” The Sony Pictures release followed up its above-expectations debut with $23.3 million in its second weekend. In two weeks, the video-game adaptation has grossed $103.5 million in U.S.
In a close race for third place, “Heart of the Beast” came out just ahead of “Primetime” with an estimated $20 million from 3,435 theaters. Directed by David Ayer, the film stars Pitt as a retired veteran who must trek through the Alaskan wilderness with his combat dog after a plane crash. It added $30.1 million in international theaters.
Pattinson drives ‘Primetime’ sales But the opening for “Primetime” was more impressive. “Heart of the Beast” cost $82 million to produce, making its path to profitability challenging. “Primetime,” starring Pattinson as “To Catch a Predator” host Chris Hansen, was made with a modest budget of $15 million and it opened in 500 fewer theaters.
Yet “Primetime,” buoyed by strong reviews and buzz out of the Venice Film Festival, debuted with $19.2 million. For Pattinson, who also starred this year in A24’s “The Drama” and Universal’s “The Odyssey,” the strong performance showed the actor’s d… and Chris Evans.Among rereleases, only the 1997 release of “Star Wars: A New Hope” ($35.9 million) and the 2011 repeat of “The Lion King” ($30.2 million) have opened higher than “Endgame” in domestic cinemas.Hollywood has increasingly turned to rereleases in recent years to take advantage of holes in the release schedule.
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