‘Jack’ slays N America box office

LOS ANGELES (AFP) – Big-budget action-adventure “Jack the Giant Slayer” crushed all rivals in its debut weekend, easily topping the North American box office, industry estimates showed Sunday.

“Jack”, which stars Nicholas Hoult in the title role as a young farmhand battling giants to save a princess, raked in US$28 million in its first three days of release, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Nicholas Hoult in a scene from ‘Jack the Giant Slayer.’ PHOTOS: AP

It easily unseated the comedy “Identity Thief” starring Melissa McCarthy and Jason Bateman, which dropped back to second place with US$9.7 million in box office receipts. So far, “Thief” has taken in US$107.4 million.

Debuting in third place was comedy “21 & Over,” about a medical student who goes out partying with his buddies for his 21st birthday on the eve of a major med school exam. The film took in US$9 million from Friday to Sunday.

In fourth place was horror sequel “The Last Exorcism Part II” which earned an estimated US$8 million in its opening weekend.

Action film “Snitch” starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson dropped from second to fifth place with US$7.7 million, followed by animated kids movie “Escape from Planet Earth,” in sixth with US$6.7 million.

A scene from the film ‘A Good Way to Die Hard’

Romantic drama “Safe Haven”, the latest adaptation of a Nicholas Sparks novel, was in seventh place at US$6.3 million.

“Silver Linings Playbook” whose star Jennifer Lawrence took home the Oscar for best actress finished in eighth place with US$5.9 million. It has so far taken in US$115.5 million in box office sales.

“A Good Day to Die Hard”, the latest “Die Hard” action film with Bruce Willis reprising his role as supercop John McClane, finished in ninth place despite less-than-flattering reviews with US$4.5 million.

Rounding out the top 10 was science fiction horror movie “Dark Skies” with US$3.6 million.