LOS ANGELES (AP) – After three weeks atop the box office, The Hobbit has been taken down by Liam Neeson.
Taken 3 nabbed the top spot at the weekend box office in North America with $40.4 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. The third instalment of the 20th Century Fox thriller series stars Neeson as a vengeance-seeking retired CIA operative with “a very particular set of skills”.
The original Taken, which also features Maggie Grace and Famke Janssen, debuted in 2009 with $24.7 million, while Taken 2 launched in 2012 with $49.5 million. Taken 3 also earned $41 million in 36 international territories this weekend.
“For Neeson to be at this stage in his career and be considered one of the premier action heroes is certainly unexpected, but it’s really cool and lucrative,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at box-office tracker Rentrak.
“I don’t think Neeson expected back in ‘09 that Taken would take off the way it has. It’s really enhanced his box-office appeal.”
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies slid to fourth place with $9.4 million following three straight weeks in first place. The total domestic take for filmmaker Peter Jackson’s Middle-earth finale now stands at $236.5 million. The Hobbit also earned $21.8 million internationally this weekend, pushing the worldwide total to $545.3 million.
Into the Woods milked $9.7 million in third place in its third week at the box office, bringing the total haul of Disney’s Broadway musical adaptation to $105.3 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to Rentrak.
1. Taken 3, $40.4 million ($41 million international).
2. Selma, $11.2 million.
3. Into the Woods, $9.7 million ($7.6. million international).
4. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, $9.4 million ($21.8 million international).
5. Unbroken, $8.7 million ($5.7 million international).
6. The Imitation Game, $7.6 million ($5.5 international).
7. Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, $6.7 million ($46.2 million international).
8. Annie, $4.9 million ($14 million international).
9. The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death, $4.8 million ($1.5 million international).
10. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, $3.7 million.
