‘Kung Fu Panda 3’ unseats ‘The Revenant’ as top-grossing movie

By Tre’vell Anderson, Los Angeles Times
February 1, 2016

In the box-office battle of the bears, 20th Century Fox’s “Kung Fu Panda 3” kicked the Oscar-nominated “The Revenant” from the top spot this weekend.

Other new releases, including Open Road’s “Fifty Shades of Black,” Disney and Buena Vista’s “The Finest Hours” and the Weinstein Co.’s “Jane Got a Gun,” failed to find significant audiences.

“Kung Fu Panda 3,” DreamWorks Animation’s latest film in the cartoon panda franchise, grossed an estimated $41 million in the U.S. and Canada. The action film/comedy exceeded studio expectations of $35 million, but came in $4 million shy of analyst projections.

SIU Leadership and Service Week 2024. Recognizing National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. Events from November 15th through 21st.

The film’s performance in international territories, particularly China, was also outstanding. It grossed $57 million in the country over the weekend.

In second place this weekend was “The Revenant” with Leonardo DiCaprio, who won top acting honors at Saturday’s SAG Awards. Pulling in $12.4 million in its sixth week, it continues to show box-office endurance thanks to its 12 Oscar nominations, including nods for best picture, lead actor (DiCaprio) and director (Alejandro G. Inarritu).

Faring the best of the newcomers after “Panda” was “The Finest Hours.” The picture, which stars Chris Pine, came in above expectations, with an estimated $10.3 million in ticket sales, for a fourth-place finish behind “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”

The raunchy, low-budget “Fifty Shades of Black” came in well below projections, with only $6.2 million, for ninth place. Analysts believed that the Marlon Wayans-led “Fifty Shades of Grey” spoof would bring in anywhere between $10 million and $15 million. But audiences haven’t responded well.

According to CinemaScore, moviegoers graded the film a C. Rotten Tomatoes critics also didn’t find the comedy funny, with only 13 percent rating it favorably.

Last among new releases, “Jane Got a Gun” grossed $803,000 from 1,210 locations. It stars Natalie Portman, Joel Edgerton and Ewan McGregor.

___

Advertisement*

Visit the Los Angeles Times at www.latimes.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.