‘Expendables 2’ guns to top of N. America box office

LOS ANGELES, United States of America – All-star action romp “The Expendables 2” opened on top at the North American box office this week, pushing another sequel, “The Bourne Legacy,” off the summit, industry estimates showed Sunday, August 19.

The Sylvester Stallone thriller, which also features Jason Statham and Jet Li as part of a team of mercenaries, raked in US$28.8-M during its first Friday through Sunday run, according to movie tracker Exhibitor Relations.

“The Bourne Legacy” — starring Jeremy Renner as a secret agent threatened by his employers in a spin-off of the popular series of films that had starred Matt Damon as Jason Bourne — took in US$17-M.

That kept it ahead of another new release, “ParaNorman,” an animated movie about a boy who can speak with the dead, set to earn US$14-M in ticket sales.

Political spoof “The Campaign,” starring Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis, fell to 4th place, with box office receipts of US$13.4-M, while Jordin Sparks-starrer “Sparkle” — a Motown-style musical set in the 1960s — opened in 5th place, with US$12-M.

“Sparkle” is also Whitney Houston’s last film.

“The Dark Knight Rises,” the latest Batman installment, slipped to 6th place, earning US$11.1-M, just barely ahead of quirky fantasy-comedy “The Odd Life of Timothy Green,” which was the final new release to make this week’s top ten (US$10.9-M).

Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones’s romantic comedy “Hope Springs,” about a married couple trying to get back their spark, was in 8th place (US$9.1-M).

And rounding out the top 10, well behind the others, were teen comedy “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days” (US$3.9-M) and science-fiction action remake “Total Recall” (US$3.5-M). – Agence France-Presse

Have you watched “The Expendables 2”? If not, read Rappler contributor Bert B. Sulat’s review here.