LOS ANGELES _ It's no secret that Universal's "The Fate of the Furious" cannot be stopped at the box office.
With $19.4 million this weekend, the eighth installment of the "Fast and Furious" franchise has grossed $192.7 million domestically to date. On the international front, the picture crossed the billion-dollar mark, now sitting at $1.1 billion worldwide, making it the latest movie to reach that milestone after Disney's "Beauty and the Beast."
But this week, eyes are on different movies that, while not box office champs, are winners in another way.
Pantelion's "How to Be A Latin Lover" pulled in an estimated $12 million in the U.S. and Canada in its debut week well above analysts' single-digit projections. Such a performance is history-making for the Latino-focused joint venture of Lionsgate and Grupo Televisa as the studio's biggest opening to date.
"We're all very happy with the results," said David Spitz, Lionsgate's distribution chief. "Eugenio (Derbez) has star power."
"How to Be A Latin Lover" stars Derbez as a man who falls on hard times after a career based on seducing older women. Salma Hayek co-stars with Rob Lowe and Kristen Bell.
The film's stellar performance, from just 1,118 targeted locations, is important considering the demographics of its audience. In addition to 50 percent of them being over 35, 89 percent of moviegoers were Latino. This domestic support for a film lead by one of Mexico's biggest stars bodes well for Derbez's hopes to cross over, and the future of Pantelion.
Eyes are also on Great India Films' "Baahubali 2: The Conclusion" which, screening in 420 locations, landed in third with $10.1 million. The Tollywood (Telugu language) film from South India is a historical action drama fantasy and the sequel to 2015's "Baahubali: The Beginning."
Directed by SS Rajamouli, known for a host of Trlugu pictures, the film stars Prabhas, Rana Daggubati and Anushka Shetty., all noted actors in India.
While an average Rotten Tomatoes rating is not yet available, the two reviews from the site give the picture three and four stars out of five.
In fourth place was EuropaCorp and STX Entertainment's "The Circle" with $9.3 million, just below the lower end of analysts' $10 million to $12 million expectations.
Based on the 2013 Dave Eggers novel about a powerful Internet company, the film puts a social media-age spin on dystopian nightmares like "1984" and "Brave New World," in an effort to reach young adults with a heady thriller. It stars Emma Watson, Tom Hanks and John Boyega.
Rounding out the top five was 20th Century Fox's "Boss Baby," with $9.1 million in its fifth week. The animated movie has brought in $148.5 million domestically to date.
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