Box Office: ‘Boss Baby’ Stays in Charge, Edging ‘Beauty and the Beast’

In a tight battle, Fox’s animated comedy “The Boss Baby” is again edging “Beauty and the Beast” with about $26.6 million at the pre-Easter weekend box office in North America, estimates showed Saturday.

Disney’s fourth weekend of “Beauty and the Beast” will finish a close second with about $25.2 million at 4,210 venues in what will be the 10th-highest fourth weekend of all time. The North American haul for the live-action blockbuster will wind up at around $432.5 million. That’s just behind “E.T. — The Extraterrestrial” for the 14th spot on the all-time list.

Sony’s opening of the animated family film “Smurfs: The Lost Village” is heading for third with about $14.5 million at 3,610 locations. The film received an A+ CinemaScore from the under 18 demographic and A overall, giving hope that the blue creatures will show some holding power during final weeks of spring break.

New Line’s launch of senior-citizen heist comedy “Going in Style” is following in fourth with about $12.1 million at 3,061 sites — well above recent expectations, which had forecast a quiet finish around $8 million. Reviews have been mixed with a 43% “rotten” rating on Rotten Tomatoes but the budget for the reboot, starring Alan Arkin, Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman, is a modest $25 million.

“The Boss Baby” grossed $6.9 million Friday while “Beauty and the Beast” charmed its way to $6.8 million. “Going in Style” took in $4.2 million on Friday, edging “Smurfs: The Lost Village” with $4.1 million.

Paramount’s second weekend of “Ghost in the Shell” is fading fast in fifth with about $7.1 million at 3,440 venues — a 62% decline from the disappointing opening weekend for the action fantasy, based on a popular Japanese manga. Blowback from the casting of Scarlett Johansson in the lead role, rather than an Asian actress, appears to have held down ticket sales. Reviews were mixed with a 46% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Liosngate’s third weekend of “Power Rangers” will finish sixth with about $6.2 million, followed by the fifth frame of “Kong: Skull Mountain” with around $5.6 million — pushing the giant ape’s take to $156 million. “Kong: Skull Island” crossed the $500 million worldwide mark earlier this week for Warner Bros., Legendary and Tencent.

Pure Flix’s opening of faith-based “The Case for Christ” is performing in line with estimates and should wind up in eighth place with a respectable $4.5 million at 1,135 sites.

“The Boss Baby,” produced by DreamWorks Animation, has been a surprise success so far with a $50 million launch weekend — one of the best ever for a comedy opening in the first quarter. It will wind up this weekend with nearly $90 million in its first 10 days.

“Smurfs: The Lost Village” is Sony’s third film in the franchise about blue humanoids living in mushroom-shaped houses. The studio’s live action-CGI “The Smurfs” grossed $563.7 million globally in 2011, followed by 2013’s “The Smurfs 2,” which made $347.5 million worldwide on a $105 million budget. “The Lost Village” was shot entirely CGI and carries a $60 million budget.

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