In the box office battle of the sequels, ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ got a slight lead over ‘Mortal Kombat II’ in North American theaters this weekend. “The Devil Wears Prada 2” earned US$43 million in its second weekend, while “Mortal Kombat II” earned US$40 million in its first weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday.

tough competition at the box office

There were a variety of newcomers starring in wide release this weekend, including the family-friendly whodunit ‘The Sheep Detectives’ and a Billie Eilish concert film co-directed by James Cameron.But it was the grip that won. ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’, which has grossed US$433.2 million worldwide in its first 12 days of release, has helped Walt Disney Studios earn more than US$2 billion globally for the year. It has also surpassed the total gross of the first film, which, without taking inflation into account, had grossed US$327 million globally in 2006.Paul Dergarabedian, head of marketplace trends at comScore, said Mother’s Day may have helped ‘Prada’ gain the lead over the newcomer and led to a modest 44% decline in the second weekend.

‘Mortal Kombat II’ box office collection

‘Mortal Kombat II’ provided some gendered counterprogramming in the second weekend of Hollywood’s summer movie season. Warner Bros. screened the film in 3,503 locations where it attracted an overwhelmingly male audience. According to Posttrack, 75% of ticket buyers were men. ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ had an almost diametrically opposed opening weekend.The first film in the series, ‘Mortal Kombat’, was released simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max in April 2021 as part of Warner Bros.’ Pandemic-era day-to-day strategy. Reviews for the sequel have been mixed, as was its B CinemaScore. It grossed US$23 million internationally from 78 markets, for a global gross of US$63 million.

‘Michael’ achieved third highest collection

‘Michael’ dropped to third place with $36.5 million in its third weekend, down only 33% from the previous weekend. The Michael Jackson biopic has now grossed US$240.5 million in North America, surpassing ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’s total domestic gross and US$577.4 million globally.

‘The Sheep Detective’ grosses US$15.9 million

Fourth place went to Amazon MGM Studios’ The Sheep Detectives, which earned US$15.9 million in its first weekend in 3,457 theaters. This quirky, all-ages murder mystery stars the voices of Hugh Jackman, Emma Thompson and Nicholas Braun, as well as Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Regina Hall and Patrick Stewart as sheep who try to figure out who murdered their shepherd. Audiences gave it an A- CinemaScore. The film reportedly cost US$75 million to produce.

Billie Eilish’s tour film debuts with US$12.6 million

Rounding out the top five was ‘Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard & Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D)’, an immersive concert experience that Cameron shared co-directing credit with Eilish. Paramount released the film in 2,613 theaters, where it grossed US$7.5 million in North America and US$12.6 million internationally. The film was very well reviewed by critics (93% on Rotten Tomatoes) and audiences, who gave it a CinemaScore of A.‘Project Hail Mary’, in its eighth weekend, and ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’, in its sixth weekend, are still going strong – which is a significant increase from the same weekend last year. Dergarabedian said that films that are performing well and attracting new and repeat viewers week after week are those that provide “pure, escapist entertainment”.“It’s going very well for movie theaters right now,” he said.

Top 10 films at domestic box office

This list takes into account estimated ticket sales at US and Canadian theaters from Friday to Sunday, with final domestic figures released on Monday, according to comScore:1. The Devil Wears Prada 2 – US$43 million.2. Mortal Kombat II – US$40 million.3. Michael – US$36.5 million.4. Sheep Detective – US$15.9 million.5. Billie Eilish-Hit Me Hard & Soft: The Tour – US$7.5 million.6. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie – US$6.6 million.7. Project Hail Mary – US$6.1 million.8. Spades – US$3.3 million.9. Deep Water – USD 780,274.10. Animal Farm – USD 663,624.