LOS ANGELES (AP) — Doctor Strange and his multiverse had a brief pause at the weekend box office as Tom Cruise and “Top Gun” winged.
Marvel’s “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” was the top-grossing film of the weekend for the third consecutive week, grossing $31.6 million in 4,534 North American theaters, according to studio estimates released Sunday.
“Downton Abbey: A New Era” made a strong debut for Focus Features with $16 million from 3,820 theaters, but there was no real blockbuster competition for “Doctor Strange.”
That will change with the release of the long-awaited, and long-delayed, “Top Gun: Maverick,” the sequel arriving next week over Memorial Day weekend, 36 years after the original smash hit and cultural landmark.
It flies amidst the sky-high hype.
Cruz had a film festival in Cannes, France, for the film’s European premiere on Wednesday with a whirlwind appearance that included a flyover of French fighter jets and an honorary Palme d’Or award.
But while the world waits, “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” crossed the $800 million mark in global earnings, surpassing “The Batman” to become the highest-grossing film of the year.
Released by The Walt Disney Company and directed by Sam Raimi, “Doctor Strange 2” benefited from being the first Marvel film to follow “Spider-Man: No Way Home”, in which Benedict Cumberbatch played a key role.
It is also based on the popular Disney+ series “Wondvision” and includes several cameos that fans didn’t want to spoil.
The holdover family films “The Bad Guys” and “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” took third and fourth places. Universal’s “The Bad Guys” added $6.1 million in its fifth week. ‘Sonic 2’ grossed $3.9 million in seventh.
Director Alex Garland’s folk horror thriller “Men” grossed $3.3 million for production company and distributor A24.
Meanwhile, “Everything Everywhere All At Once” is still going strong nine weeks after its release. The A24 film grossed an additional $3.3 million, down only 6% from the previous weekend, bringing its total to $47 million.
Estimated ticket sales in theaters in the US and Canada from Friday to Sunday, according to comScore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” $31.6 million.
2. “Downton Abbey: A New Era,” $16 million.
3. “Bad Guys,” $6.1 million.
4. “Sonic the Hedgehog 2,” $3.9 million.
5. “Men,” $3.3 million.
6. “Everywhere at Once,” $3.1 million.
7. “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” $1.9 million.
8. “Firestarter,” $1.9 million.
9. “The Lost City,” $1.5 million.
10. “The Northman,” $1 million.
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