LOS ANGELES _ The box office was dominated by villains and sequels as Disney and Buena Vista's "Maleficent: Mistress of Evil" toppled "Joker" from the top spot after two weekends of dominance.
The $185 million film, which stars Angelina Jolie as the titular "Sleeping Beauty" sorceress, opened with a disappointing $36 million, well below analyst projections of $45 million to $50 million, according to estimates from measurement firm Comscore. Internationally it earned $117 million for a global cumulative of $153 million.
It earned a mixed reception with an A CinemaScore but a 41% "rotten" rating on review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.
A follow-up to 2014's "Maleficent," the sequel failed to recapture the allure of the first film, which opened with $69.4 million in North America on its way to $758 million in global ticket sales. The result may reflect fatigue among moviegoers of Disney's live-action remakes, following underperformers such as "Dumbo" and "Alice Through the Looking Glass."
However, it was a particularly strong weekend for specialty films.
In limited release, Fox Searchlight opened Taika Waititi's Holocaust comedy "Jojo Rabbit" in five locations to $350,000 for an impressive per-screen average of $70,000, one of the best specialty box office openings of the year. It earned a 77% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. A24 opened "The Lighthouse" in eight locations to $419,764 for a strong per-screen average of $52,471. It earned a 93% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Neon's "Parasite" added 30 locations for a total of 33, earning $1.2 million in its second weekend for a still impressive $37,616 per screen average and a cumulative $1.8 million. The critically acclaimed Bong Joon Ho film enjoyed a 233% increase over its opening weekend, finishing just outside the top 10.
In second place, "Joker" added $29.2 million. Worldwide, it crossed the $700 million mark after just three weeks in theaters, currently standing at $737.5 million.
At No. 3, "Zombieland: Double Tap" opened with $26.7 million. Original cast members Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson and Abigail Breslin return a decade later for the sequel with newcomers Rosario Dawson, Luke Wilson and Thomas Middleditch.
In fourth place, "The Addams Family" animated remake added $16.1 million in its second weekend.
Rounding out the top five, "Gemini Man" added $8.5 million. Globally, it has earned $82.2 million.
