Kung Fu Panda 4 has managed to retain its top spot at the weekend box office, narrowly edging out Dune: Part Two in a closely contested race. The animated sequel brought in $30 million domestically, just surpassing Dune's $29.1 million earnings. Both films continue to perform strongly, with Kung Fu Panda 4 grossing $176.5 million worldwide and Dune: Part Two amassing $494.7 million globally after three weekends.
Dune: Part Two's ability to stay competitive can be attributed to its modest 37% drop in earnings between its second and third weekends, despite losing 227 theaters. Meanwhile, Mark Wahlberg's new film, Arthur the King, debuted at No. 3 with $7.5 million, showing promise in recouping its $20 million budget.
Imaginary, a horror film by Lionsgate and Blumhouse, held up well with a 44% drop in earnings, securing the No. 4 spot with $5.6 million. Cabrini rounded out the Top 5 with $2.8 million, while Love Lies Bleeding, featuring Kristen Stewart, climbed to No. 6 in its second week with $2.5 million.
One Life and The American Society of Magical Negroes landed at No. 8 and No. 9 respectively, with earnings of $1.7 million and $1.3 million. The horror film Exhuma boasted the highest per-theater average of $21,883 after opening in limited release in three theaters.
Looking ahead, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is set to make a splash on March 22, followed by Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire on March 29, promising to keep the box office momentum going strong in March.
