“Fast Five” races to No. 1 spot at the weekend box office earning a whooping $83.6 million. The fifth installment of Universal Pictures’ “The Fast and the Furious” franchise was this year’s biggest opening. It was double the $39.2 million for “Rio,” 20th Century Fox animated hit which is now in 2nd place.
The previous Fast and the Furious movie earned $71 million in its weekend opening. “Fast Five” reunites Vin Diesel and Paul Walker and adds Dwayne Johnson as a federal agent who are pursuing Diesel in the streets of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Some fans may be disappointed that the latest installment in the franchise does not include a single car-chase scene. The franchise is no longer strictly about street racing as the movie has a number of shootouts and some physical combat as well.
Nikki Rocco, head of distribution for Universal said “This was all about the right decisions we made, from the concept to the task. How this was made, that it’s not just a car-racing movie, but making it into an action-heist movie. … And the marketing that said, ‘This is not the same. This is new. You’re going to love this, and it’s going to open up a whole new world.’”
Fast Five” also earned $81.4 million overseas, bringing its worldwide total to $165 million.
This is a good beginning for the summer season as overall revenues reached $155 million, 52% from last year’s “A Nightmare on Elm Street” $32.9 million, earnings. With third straight weekend of increased revenue, Hollywood is positive that the movie industry will rebound from its prolonged downturn since 2010.
“What a difference three weeks can make,” said Hollywood.com analyst Paul Dergarabedian. “We get so gloom-and-doom, and appropriately so, but look how quickly we’re turning this around. And we’re on the cusp of the biggest movie-going season of the year.”
“Thor” which is scheduled for release in the United States this coming weekend has already opened in many international markets, bringing in $93 million earnings.
Meanwhile, another movie this weekend, Disney’s teen romance “Prom” debuted at No. 5 with only $5 million, animated sequel “Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil” is at No. 6 with just $4.1 million.
Here are some of the movies coming soon to theaters:
May 6- Thor / There Be Dragons / Something Borrowed/ Jumping the Broom
May 9- The Edge
May 13 – Bridesmaids/ Priest/ True Legend
May 18- Louder Than a Bomb
May 20- Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides/ The Lion of Judah /Midnight in Paris
May 26- The Hangover Part II
May 27- Kung Fu Panda 2/ The Tree of Life/ Bridesmaids
June 3- X-Men: First Class/ Beginners/ The Last Mountain/ Love, Wedding, Marriage/ Submarine
June 10- Super 8/ Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer/ Trollhunter
June 17- Mr. Popper’s Penguins/ Green Lantern/ The Art of Getting By
June 24- Cars 2/ Bad Teacher/ A Better Life
July 1- Transformers: Dark of the Moon/ Larry Crowne/ Terri
Read Also
