Thor has nailed down the number one spot at the US box office again. Paramount’s 3D superhero film, starring Chris Hemsworth as Marvel’s hammer-toting god of thunder, earned 34.5 million dollars in its second weekend, according to studio estimates. That brings the total haul of ‘Thor’ to 119.2 million dollars, though not quite as impressive as fellow comic book hero ‘Iron Man 2,’ which earned 211.2 million by its second weekend the same time last year.
“Thor had a really great playing field to work on for its second weekend in theatres,” said Paul Dergarabedian, box office analyst. “For a big-budget Marvel Comics film that opened very solidly to drop only 48% indicates some very strong word of mouth. I think Kenneth Branagh being the director really brought a lot to the table.”
Universal’s ‘Bridesmaids,’ the raunchy comedy starring Kristen Wiig as a down-on-her-luck maid of honour, debuted above expectations in second place with 24.4 million dollars. Nikki Rocco, head of distribution for Universal, attributed the movie’s good reviews and word of mouth to wide audience appeal: 67% of the audience was female; 33% male. “That’s pretty good considering this is a picture titled ‘Bridesmaids’,” said Rocco.
The next adversary for ‘Thor’ arrives next week with the opening of ‘Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,’ the fourth film in the blockbuster Disney franchise starring Johnny Depp as mischievous pirate Captain Jack Sparrow. Universal’s car-racing sequel ‘Fast Five,’ with Dwayne Johnson, shifted into the third position with 19.5 million dollars in its third weekend in cinemas. Sony’s 3D vampire-hunting graphic novel adaptation ‘Priest’ opened in fourth place with 14.5 million dollars, while Fox’s animated bird tale ‘Rio’ landed at fifth place with eight million in its fifth weekend on screens.
