‘Divergent’ debuts as US box office champ

LOS ANGELES, California – Teen adventure “Divergent” emerged as the North American box office champion at the weekend, leaving also just-released “Muppets Most Wanted” trailing in a distant second place, industry figures showed Monday, March 25.

Taking an estimated $54.6 million, “Divergent,” the dystopian tale of a young woman in a futuristic society, is based on the popular young adult novel of the same name.

There had been rumors that the movie, targeting the same teen audience as the blockbuster “Hunger Games” and “Twilight” franchises, might disappoint at the box office.

But its director Neil Burger and star actress Shailene Woodley will be relieved with a relatively strong debut return on the movie’s estimated $85 million budget.

“Divergent,” a sequel to which is already in the works, easily beat “Muppets Most Wanted,” which earned $17 million in its first weekend. The box office debut for Kermit and Co’s latest outing compared to $29 million earned by 2011’s “The Muppets” on its first weekend.

Tina Fey, Ty Burrell and Ricky Gervais star in a European adventure in which a Russian-accented Kermit look-alike takes the Muppet gang for a ride.

Coming in third was animated film “Mr Peabody & Sherman,” based on characters from the 1960s television cartoon “Rocky and Bullwinkle.” Slipping from last week’s first-place spot, the film earned $11.8 million in its third weekend, figures from Exhibitor Relations showed.

In its first weekend in theaters, the religiously themed “God’s Not Dead,” which tells the story of a college freshman who debates with his atheist philosophy professor, debuted in fourth place with $9.2 million.

Ancient Greece fantasy-action movie “300: Rise of an Empire,” the gory follow-up to the 2007 hit “300,” landed in fifth with $8.5 million.

And fast-paced, car-chase action movie “Need for Speed,” inspired by the videogame of the same name, earned $7.9 million, falling from third to sixth.

Wes Anderson’s quirky “The Grand Budapest Hotel” climbed one spot to seventh with just under $6.8 million.

And eighth place went to “Non-Stop,” the Liam Neeson action movie set on a long-haul flight. The film added another $6.4 million to its total earnings.

Falling to ninth was hit animated film “The Lego Movie,” inspired by the children’s toy building blocks, which took in $4.1 million.

And rounding out the top 10 with $3.1 million was “The Single Moms Club,” the latest offering from prolific actor-director Tyler Perry, about five struggling mothers who set aside their differences to bond in a support group. – Rappler.com