Batman gives Christian Grey a spanking US moviegoers could choose violence, sex or family-friendly fare this weekend with three diverse new offerings that all drew healthy numbers at the North American box office. The Lego Batman Movie - which isn't due for release in New Zealand until April - took the top spot with US$55.6 million, dominating Fifty Shades Darker, which attracted US$46.8 million, according to studio estimates. The spinoff of 2014's Lego Movie benefited from good reviews and a lack of competition in the family space, which is expected to help it maintain its pace going into the holiday weekend, when kids are out of school. A whopping 48 per cent of opening weekend audiences was under 25. It also bodes well for Warner Bros' next Lego spinoff, The Lego Ninjago Movie, set for September. US audiences were slightly less curious to catch up with the exploits of Christian Grey and Ana Steele the second time around. The sequel didn't compare to Fifty Shades of Grey's $85.2 million debut in 2015.
Nick Carpou, Universal Pictures' president of domestic theatrical distribution, said the first movie debuted in a "perfect storm". The film adaptation of the best-selling book had gained immense interest and Valentine's Day fell on a Saturday in 2015, making the movie a date-night destination. This year, the holiday lands on a Tuesday. "This is a great start," Carpou said, noting that the CinemaScore from audiences is stronger for the sequel. "The story will be told through the first part of this week." Fifty Shades Darker fared much better abroad, bringing in US$100.1 million and topping international charts. The other R-rated sequel in theaters this weekend, John Wick: Chapter 2 took third place. With US$30 million, it more than doubled the debut of the original. The Keanu Reeves hit man flick became a sleeper hit on the small screen, and that goodwill helped bolster interest in the follow-up, which is also getting strong reviews. "People really love its unapologetic violence," said Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst for box office tracker comScore.
Rounding out the top five were holdovers Split, the M Night Shyamalan psychological thriller that added $9.3 million, for a total of US$112.3 million in earnings, and Oscar contender Hidden Figures with US$8 million, boosting its total to US$131.5 million.New content arrives on iTunes all the time. Here you can see what’s new this week and browse the top 100 songs, albums, movies, apps and more. Shop in the iTunes Store now Featured Songs Albums Free Apps Paid Apps Books Movies Music Videos Once you have, we'll remember it using your phone's cookies. Will Arnett voices the blocky Dark Knight once again for this follow-up to 2014's The LEGO Movie, now putting Batman in the spotlight. From the director of Robot Chicken and Moral Orel, co-voiced by Michael Cera as LEGO Robin, Rosario Dawson as LEGO Batgirl, Zach Galifianakis as LEGO Joker, and Ralph Fiennes as LEGO Alfred.From the director of Robot Chicken and Moral Orel, co-voiced by Michael Cera as LEGO Robin, Rosario Dawson as LEGO Batgirl, Zach Galifianakis as LEGO Joker, and Ralph Fiennes as LEGO Alfred.
Chris McKay ('2wks, 1yr') Will Arnett, Rosario Dawson, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Cera, Zach Galifianakis, Mariah Carey, Jenny Slate Rated PG, Violence | Action, Adventure, Animated, Comedy, Kids & Family | We've got no reviews for this film, not one.Watch trailer 6 April 2017PGThe Lego Batman MovieIn the irreverent spirit of fun that made "The LEGO (R) Movie" a worldwide phenomenon, the self-described leading man of that ensemble - LEGO Batman - stars in his own big-screen adventure: "The LEGO (R) Batman Movie." But there are big changes brewing in Gotham, and if he wants to save the city from The Joker's hostile takeover, Batman may have to drop the lone vigilante thing, try to work with others and maybe, just maybe, learn to lighten up.Starring: Jenny Slate, Will Arnett, Ralph Fiennes$0.00Aotea SquareTaller than a two-storey house and built from over half a million LEGO bricks, the LEGO Christmas Tree is lighting up Aotea Square until 27 December. The jaw-dropping giant LEGO Christmas Tree stands over 10 metres tall, weighs 3.5 tonnes and took more than 1,200 hours to build.
Decorated with some distinctly kiwi-themed festive additions including a kiwi, a pukeko, and a surfing Santa, the spectacular Christmas star alone has 13,195 LEGO bricks and 3,456 LED lights, making it the ultimate tree topper. See it ablaze in Aotea Square every evening in a spectacular light and sound show from 7 pm onwards. While you’re there pick up a copy of the Auckland Live Summer in the Square brochure. Packed full of FREE summer entertainment, activities and events happening from December to February in Aotea Square, it’s your one-stop summer fun guide. With support from Auckland Council, LEGO, Heart of The City, The Hits and The New Zealand Herald. Join us from 6.30pm – 8.30pm on Friday 25 November and be the first to see the LEGO Christmas Tree light show as we celebrate Christmas in Aotea Square with traditional carols.Ask any Aussie why they pirate their favourite shows rather than support them on TV and you'll always get a slightly different version of the same excuse: "because it took too long to come out here".
It's the same with Game Of Thrones, Breaking Bad and Top Gear. And with Agents of Shield. And The Walking Dead. None of these TV shows have gone quite as far as The LEGO Movie though: despite it being made locally, Australia and New Zealand are two of the last countries to see the film in cinemas. The LEGO Movie is already out in the US and it's doing massive business, racking up an initial weekend box office of $77 million in North American cineplexes alone. It's the story of an ordinary LEGO man being mistaken for a MasterBuilder and being enlisted to help defeat an evil LEGO overlord. It's currently rated at 95 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes, and it's delighting people of all ages. What you don't know is this: It took over two years just to shoot it in a studio in Sydney and their hard work is now being seen all over the world. And eventually, Australia will see it too. According to Warner Brothers, the distributor of The LEGO Movie won't land in Australia until 3 April: 54 whole days after its US release.
And it gets worse than that. Other countries getting The LEGO Movie before Australia include all of Latin America and the Carribean, all of the Middle East and Africa, most of our Asian Pacific neighbours, and every major market in Europe. Hell, coming in dead-last with a release date of April 17 is New Zealand. Here's some perspective: if you watched The LEGO Movie once per day in every single country it was showing in, the film would have only been out in Australian theatres for 9 days upon your return. That's enough to have any Aussie spit bricks. The likely justification for delaying the release of one of the best reviewed movies of the year is probably due to our holidays. In case you haven't figured it out yet, April is basically a public holiday month for Australia with Easter and ANZAC Day public holidays falling around the same time. Releasing The LEGO Movie at that time guarantees that it'll do huge family movie business, especially given the hype it has garnered internationally.