Liam Neeson's ‘Taken 3’ earns $40.4 million in its North American debut, topping the box office and scoring the second-best January opening of all time.
Closing out the franchise in style, Liam Neeson's Taken 3 earned $40.4 million from 3,594 theaters in its North American debut, topping the box office and scoring the second-best January opening of all time, not accounting for inflation. The action movie earned another $41 million overseas from 36 markets for an early foreign total of $52.3 million and worldwide haul of $92.7 million.
The $48 million action film, produced by Luc Besson's EuropaCorp and distributed by Fox, reteams Neeson with cast members Famke Janssen and Maggie Grace, and introduces Forest Whitaker to the franchise. Olivier Megaton returns in the director's chair, while Besson and Robert Mark Kamen once again wrote the script. This time out, ex-covert operative Bryan Mills (Neeson) avenges the death of his ex-wife.
Ava DuVernay's Golden Globe nominee Selma came in number two as it expanded nationwide following a limited Christmas release. Paramount’s civil rights drama, starring David Oyelowo as Martin Luther King Jr., grossed $11.2 million from 2,157 locations for an early total of $13.5 million. Selma was produced by Oprah Winfrey and Brad Pitt's Plan B Entertainment.
Disney holdover Into the Woods, also a Golden Globe best-picture nominee, came in third place with $9.8 million from 2,823 theaters, pushing its domestic total to $105.3 million. Overseas, the musical directed by Rob Marshall earned $7.6 million from 15 territories for an early foreign total of $15.3 million and global tally of $120.6 million.
From New Line and MGM, Peter Jackson's final Hobbit installment, The Battle of the Five Armies, followed in fourth place with $9.4 million from 3,402 locations. Through Sunday, the tentpole has grossed $236.5 million domestically and more than $700 million worldwide. The film now ranks second among 2014 releases ahead of Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy but behind Paramount’s Transformers: Age of Extinction.
Angelina Jolie's WWII drama Unbroken grossed $8.4 million from 3,301 theaters for a North American total of $101.6 million. The movie took in $5.7 million internationally from 24 markets, including a $1.5 million debut in France. Unbroken has earned a total of $14 million overseas for an early worldwide total of $115.6 million.
The Weinstein Co.’s The Imitation Game moved up the chart to number six, earning $7.6 million from 1,566 locations for a North American total of $40.7 million. Overseas the film has made $31.1 million for total of $71.9 million globally.
Fox's family film Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb followed in seventh place, earning $6.7 million from 3,371 theaters in its fourth weekend for a domestic total of $99.5 million. The threequel topped the foreign chart with $46.2 million, thanks in large part to a $26.7 million debut in China, where the film opened on January 4. Secret of the Tomb has now grossed $148.6 million internationally and $248.1 million globally.
Annie, also in its fourth weekend and playing in 2,856 theaters, placed number eight domestically with $4.9 million, bringing its North American total to $79.4 million and worldwide tally to $98.8 million.
Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death, released by Relativity in the U.S., came in ninth place over its second weekend with $4.8 million from 2,602 locations. The sequel's domestic total through Sunday is $22.3 million.
Rounding up the list at number 10 is Lionsgate’s YA adaptation The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1. Now in its eighth week at the box office, the Francis Lawrence-directed $48 million film made $3.8 million for a domestic total of $329.5 million. Overseas, the latest Hunger Games installment has made $371.6 million for a total of $701.1 million worldwide.
Elsewhere, Disney’s celebrated animated feature Big Hero 6 jumped the $400 million mark worldwide, adding $12.6 million for a new international total of $194.5 million. The Marvel-inspired movie has now made $214.5 million domestically and a global tally of $409 million.
Box office numbers were obtained on boxofficemojo.com.
Formerly Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network, Jennifer Wolfe has worked in the Media & Entertainment industry as a writer and PR professional since 2003.
