‘Ant-Man’ punches above his weight in debut weekend

LOS ANGELES, USA– Marvel action flick Ant-Man proved less can be more as it topped the North American box office tally in its debut over the weekend, industry figures showed Sunday.

The movie – about a thief-turned-hero who wears special armor that makes him tiny but super strong as he undertakes a mission to save the world –posted sales of $58 million, said box office tracker Exhibitor Relations. (READ: ‘Ant-Man’ Review: Bite-sized thrills)

It unseated the animated comedy Minions, a prequel to the Despicable Me movies featuring three tiny mischievous creatures. This one came in second with $50.2 million, after racking up $115.7 million last weekend in its debut.

Minions tells the story of lozenge-shaped, yellow characters whose goal is to serve the most despicable master they can. (READ: Movie reviews: What critics are saying about the ‘Minions’)

Another movie making its debut – Trainwreck with comic Amy Schumer – came in third with $30.2 million in sales. It is about a woman who is wary of steady romantic relationships but falls for a sports doctor.

In fourth place was the animated flick Inside Out, at $11.7 million. 

It features the voice of comedian Amy Poehler and follows young Riley as her emotions of joy, fear, anger, disgust and sadness battle it out internally as she copes with a move to a new city.

Jurassic World dropped from second to fifth place, taking in another $11.4 million, bringing the dinosaur movie’s overall total to a huge $611.1 million.

Taking the sixth spot was action-packed sci-fi fantasy Terminator Genisys, which brought in $5.4 million in its third weekend. 

In seventh position was Magic Mike XXL, a dance-themed drama about a former stripper, starring Channing Tatum. It pulled in $4.5 million in theaters over the weekend. 

Dropping to eighth place after debuting at number five was Hollywood producer Jason Blum’s latest spine-tingler, The Gallows, which took in $4 million.

The movie, which recalls 1999’s The Blair Witch Project for its hand-held camera technique, gives young actors Reese Mishler, Pfeifer Brown, Ryan Shoos and Cassidy Gifford their first substantial roles. 

Ted 2, the raunchy sequel to Seth MacFarlane’s comedy about a foul-mouthed teddy bear grabbed ninth place, bringing in $2.7 million. 

Rounding out the top 10 was “Bajrangi Bhaijaan” at $2.5 million. 

It is about a speech-impaired girl from Pakistan who gets lost in India and gets help from a kind-hearted man to find her way home to her family. – Rappler.com