Universal sees lots of green as 'Grinch' tops box office
Universal Pictures saw plenty of green over the weekend as its remake of "The Grinch" pulled in an impressive $67.6 million in North American theaters, 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. 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. "Bohemian Rhapsody," with Rami Malek playing Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury, has drawn mixed reviews but has grown into an audience favorite. The Fox production has taken more than $100 million domestically in its first two weeks. In third place, at $10.2 million, 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. 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)
