36 years later, Top Gun again tops box office

AFP
3 Min Read
"Top Gun: Maverick" Japan Premiere Red Carpet
Actor Tom Cruise attends the red carpet for the Japan Premiere of "Top Gun: Maverick" at Osanbashi Yokohama on May 24, 2022 in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. (Photo by Ken Ishii/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures)
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Los Angeles (AFP) โ€“ Much-anticipated action film โ€œTop Gun: Maverickโ€ was expected to have a big opening and it did not disappoint, taking in an estimated $151 million in North America for the four-day Memorial Day weekend, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported.

Viewers had to wait 36 years to see the sequel to the original โ€œTop Gun,โ€ but critics say the Paramount/Skydanceย production was worth the wait, with some calling it superior to the original film.

โ€œThe source material remains strong, the execution is excellent, and Tom Cruise makes it work impeccably well,โ€ said analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research.

The film โ€” whose release had been delayed two years by the Covid-19 pandemic โ€” notched $124 million for the first three days of the holiday weekend and took in the same amount overseas, despite not playing in China or Russia. It was Cruiseโ€™s first opening to top $100 million.

He again plays cocky (if grayer) navy test pilot Pete โ€œMaverickโ€ Mitchell, now a captain, as he trains to bomb a rogue nationโ€™s uranium enrichment facility. A strong supporting cast includes Ed Harris, Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller and Jon Hamm; original โ€œTop Gunโ€ veteran Val (Iceman) Kilmer appears briefly.

Slipping a notch to second place was โ€œDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,โ€ which in its fourth weekend took in $16.4 million for the Friday-through-Sunday period and $21.1 million for the full four days.ย 

The Disney film, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, had opened to a yearโ€™s best $187 million.

In third spot was 20th Centuryโ€™s new โ€œBobโ€™s Burgers Movie.โ€ The animated film, based on a popular television show, earned $12.6 million for three days and $15 million for four.ย 

Focus Featuresโ€™ โ€œDownton Abbey: A New Eraโ€ took fourth place, with $5.9 million for three days and $7.5 million for four. Based on the hugely popular British series, it again stars Maggie Smith, Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern and Michelle Dockery.

And in fifth was Universalโ€™s family-friendly animation โ€œThe Bad Guys,โ€ at $4.6 million for three days and $6.1 million for four.

Rounding out the top 10 were:

โ€œSonic the Hedgehog 2โ€ ($2.5 million for three days; $3.1 million for four)

โ€œEverything Everywhere All at Onceโ€ ($2.5 million; $3.1 million)

โ€œThe Lost Cityโ€ ($1.8 million; $2.3 million)

โ€œMenโ€ ($1.2 million; $1.5 million)

โ€œFantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledoreโ€ ($905,000; $1.1 million)

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