Universal sees lots of green as 'Grinch' tops box office

Writer Tommy Swerdlow, producer Chris Meledandri, rapper Tyler, the Creator, producer Janet Healy, director Scott Mosier and director Yarrow Cheney attend the premiere of "Dr. Seuss' The Grinch" at Alice Tully Hall on November 3, 2018 in New York City. PHOTO| AFP

What you need to know:

  • The Grinch also landed comfortably ahead of the Ron Howard-directed 2000 version, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, which took in $55 million in its opening weekend.
  • The new film also features the voices of Rashida Jones, Kenan Thompson and Angela Lansbury, with Pharrell Williams narrating.

Universal Pictures saw plenty of green over the weekend as its remake of The Grinch pulled in an impressive $67.6 million (Sh6.9bn) in North American theatres, industry tracker Exhibitor Relations reported Monday.

The three-day results put the ever-popular Dr Seuss tale -- with Benedict Cumberbatch voicing the small-hearted, ill-tempered, kid-hating title character -- well ahead of last week's top film, Bohemian Rhapsody, which slid to second place with a still-healthy take of $31.2 million (Sh3.2bn)

TheGrinch also landed comfortably ahead of the Ron Howard-directed 2000 version, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, which took in $55 million in its opening weekend.

The new film also features the voices of Rashida Jones, Kenan Thompson and Angela Lansbury, with Pharrell Williams narrating.

MIXED REVIEWS

Bohemian Rhapsody, with Rami Malek playing Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury, has drawn mixed reviews but has grown into an audience favourite. The Fox production has taken more than $100 million domestically in its first two weeks.

In third place, at $10.2 million (Sh. 1bn), was Paramount's new release Overlord, a supernatural horror film set against a backdrop of the D-Day invasion. It stars Jovan Adepo and Wyatt Russell.

Another seasonal film, Disney's The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, placed fourth, at $10.1 million. It stars Mackenzie Foy as a young girl who travels to a magic land in search of a key to unlock a gift from her late mother. Keira Knightley, Helen Mirren and Morgan Freeman also star.

US model Mariah Strongin attends the premiere of Dr. Seuss' The Grinch at Alice Tully Hall on November 3, 2018 in New York City. PHOTO| AFP

Fifth spot went to Warner Bros's A Star Is Born, which earned $8.1 million in its sixth week out. Bradley Cooper, in his directorial debut, plays a hard-drinking musician who has a star-crossed love affair with a talented young singer played by Lady Gaga.

Rounding out the weekend's top 10 were:

The Girl in the Spider's Web ($7.8 million)

Nobody's Fool ($6.6 million)

Venom ($4.9 million)

Halloween ($4 million)

The Hate U Give ($2.1 million)