Holdover "Ant-Man" crawled inches past new opener "Pixels"and continuously dominated the weekend box office.
The Marvel and Walt Disney Co. film starring Paul Rudd as the diminutive superhero, retained its top spot gathering an estimated $24.8 million in its second week, bringing its domestic total to $106.1 million based on Rentrak estimates Sunday, FOX News reported.
Sony Pictures Entertainment's "Pixels" on the other hand, isn't so far behind landing in second place with a $24 million debut.
The Adam Sandler and Kevin James film which cost $88 million in production came close but did not succeed in unseating Marvel's superhero flick, and it seems like the idea of aliens attacking Earth using the 1980s-era arcade characters like Donkey Kong and Pacman didn't impress critics either. The movie though appealed to younger audiences with the estimated 62 percent those who were age below 25.
Rentrak's senior media analyst, Paul Dergarabedian, said Sandler can still entice an audience, but the costly flick has a lot to make up for.
"They're really going to have to count on the international component. That's going to be key," Dergarabedian explained.
Distribution president Rory Bruer said that the studio is looking overseas for stronger returns. "Pixels" has opened in around 40% of international markets and grossed approximately $25 million with a China release set on September.
"It's been a little competitive in the marketplace when you consider the extent of the performance of 'Jurassic' and 'Inside Out,'" Bruer stated, "To get to where we opened to was quite good."
Meanwhile, other holdovers "Minions" and "Trainwreck" claimed the third and fourth spot with $22.1 million and $17.3 million, respectively, BBC News has learned.
R-rated drama "Southpaw" starring Jake Gyllenhaal as a middleweight boxing champion sealed the top five collecting a $16.5 million opening.
Fox's movie adaptation of John Green's novel titled "Paper Towns" followed suit in the sixth place with $12.5 million, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Although the coming-of-age film starring Cara Delevingne and Nat Wolff cost only $12 million to produce, the flick's earnings came a bit as a disappointment compared to last year's "The Fault in Our Stars'" enormous $48 million collection.
"Inside Out" secured the seventh spot at $7.4 million followed by "Jurassic World" in the eighth place with $6.9 million.
"Mr. Holmes" and "Terminator Genisys" on the other hand, came ninth and tenth on the list with $2.8 million and $2.4 million, respectively.
