Studiocanal’s Amy Winehouse biopic “Back to Black” stayed atop the U.K. and Ireland box office for the second consecutive weekend with £1.8 million ($2.3 million), according to numbers from Comscore. The film now has a running total of £6.3 million.
In its second weekend, in second place, Entertainment Film Distributors’ “Civil War,” directed by Alex Garland and starring Kirsten Dunst, collected £1.05 million for a total of £3.8 million. In third position, in its fourth weekend, Universal’s “Kung Fu Panda 4” collected £901,615 for a total of £18.5 million.
In fourth place, in its fourth weekend, Warner Bros.’ “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” earned £652,128 for a total of £12.8 million. Universal’s “Abigail” debuted in fifth position with £596,590. There were no other debuts in the top 10.
Coming up, Trafalgar Releasing is opening “Aespa World Tour in Cinemas” featuring the eponymous Korean band in their concert at London’s O2 Arena, midweek.
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There are a plethora of releases on the Friday. Warner Bros. is opening wide Luca Guadagnino’s keenly anticipated tennis-themed drama “Challengers,” headlined by Zendaya. Also opening wide is Signature’s “Boy Kills World” an action film that follows Boy, a deaf person who is trained by a shaman to repress his childish imagination and become an instrument of death.
Sony is releasing “Ordinary Angels,” led by Hilary Swank and inspired by the true story of a hairdresser who single-handedly rallies a community to help a widowed father save the life of his critically ill young daughter. All The Anime is opening anime action comedy “Spy x Family Code: White,” while Vertigo is releasing animation action-adventure “Scarygirl.”
Vue Entertainment is opening “There’s Still Tomorrow,” the film that outperformed “Barbie” in its native Italy and won several awards at the Rome Film Fest.
Universal’s Palm Springs-winning comedy “The American Society of Magical Negroes” follows a young man who gets recruited into a secret society of magical Black people who dedicate their lives to making white people’s lives easier.
Journeyman Pictures’ documentary “Tomorrow’s Freedom” is a journey into the heart of the Israel Palestine conflict, while MusicFilmNetwork’s feature documentary “On Resistance Street” looks at the role music plays in the fight against fascism and racism. Italian veteran Marco Bellocchio’s 2023 Cannes title “Kidnapped” tells the story of a Jewish boy who is kidnapped and converted to Catholicism in 1858. And 606 Distribution’s Berlinale title “Elaha” follows the journey of a young woman’s quest for the innocence she has lost through sex.
Screenbound Pictures/Blue Dolphin are releasing a brace of films. In “Malum,” when a rookie police officer willingly takes the last shift at a newly decommissioned police station in an attempt to uncover the mysterious connection between her father’s death and a vicious cult, she begins experiencing paranormal occurrences that could lead her down the gory path to finding the answers. And “Hunt Her Kill Her” finds a lone night shift janitor in an unexpected fight for survival during her first night on the job when she becomes a target of sinister masked intruders. As their disturbing motives become clearer, she must use barbaric violence to make it through the night alive.
Modern Films is opening “Stephen,” that combines narrative fiction with real-life observation; Aya Films 2023 Cannes title “Omen”; and Universal sci-fi thriller “I.S.S.” headlined by Ariana DeBose. Conic is opening “That They May Face the Rising Sun,” set in a 1980s rural community in Ireland, while Swipe Films’ documentary “Quintessentially Irish” is a journey through Ireland’s cultural heritage.