'Furious 7' outpaces box office rivals for second week

The seventh in the stunt-filled “Fast and Furious” street-racing franchise that has raked in more than $2 billion worldwide since 2001, “Furious 7” pulled in more than $252 million in its first two weekends, according to box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

The film features the late Paul Walker, who was killed in an unrelated car crash in November 2013 while the film was still in production.

In second place was animated children’s film “Home,” about an unpopular space alien forced to flee his own kind. It earned $19 million in its third week of release.

“The Longest Ride,” an onscreen rendering of Nicholas Sparks’ romantic novel of the same name, debuted in third place, earning $13.5 million. The movie stars Scott Eastwood, the son of actor-director Clint Eastwood.

Fourth place went to buddy comedy “Get Hard,” about a prison-bound white investment banker (Will Ferrell) who hires a black car washer (Kevin Hart) for lessons on surviving the slammer. It earned $8.6 million.

Disney’s live action “Cinderella” was in fifth place, earning $7.2 million, with “Downton Abbey” star Lily James as the enchanted scullery maid-turned-princess and Cate Blanchett as her wicked stepmother.

Dystopian action thriller “Insurgent,” the second big-screen installment based on Veronica Roth’s best-selling “Divergent” book series, came in sixth place with $6.85 million.

“Woman in Gold,” which tells the true story of an elderly Holocaust survivor trying to get her Nazi-looted artwork back from the Austrian government, held onto seventh place with a $5.85 million haul.

Indie horror flick “It Follows,” took eighth place, grossing $2.0 million at the box office.

Ninth place went to dramedy “Danny Collins,” starring Al Pacino as a washed up rock star and Annette Benning as the hotel manager charmed by him. It earned $1.6 million.

Rounding out the top 10, with $1.38 million in receipts, is “While We’re Young,” a wry comedy starring Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts about a couple in the early throes of mid-life crisis.
AFP