Weekend Box Office Report: A number one opening for Maleficent sequel!

More Maleficent makes most money!

Disney's iconic villainess returned for more wicked deeds this weekend and put MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL on top at the box office with an estimated opening of $36 million!

The sequel could barely conjure up half the scratch of the 2014 prequel MALFICENT, which opened with $69.4 million before reaching $241 million domestic and $758 million worldwide.

For Disney's live-action "reimaginings", Angelina Jolie's second time portraying the pointy-cheeked fairy didn't fly as high on its first weekend as this year's THE LION KING ($191.7 million), ALADDIN ($91.5 million) or DUMBO ($45.9 million), and actually had the lowest opening since the $21.5 million start of the PETE'S DRAGON remake in 2016.

The new dark fantasy about the horn-headed magical antagonist from SLEEPING BEAUTY has also summoned $117 million from international audiences for a worldwide total of $153 million.

Also featuring Elle Fanning, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michelle Pfeiffer and Ed Skrein, the PG-rated sorceress story from director Joachim Ronning (PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES) cost a reported $185 million.

Critics clipped the wings of the fractured fairy tale, giving the movie a 41% average on Rotten Tomatoes and a 43 score on Metacritic. Gaze into the JoBlo review HERE.

After dancing on top for two weekends, director Todd Phillips's R-rated origin story JOKER stepped down to second place with $29.2 million for a domestic total of $247.2 million on its third week.

The $55 million rise of Joaquin Phoenix's painted agent of chaos has a worldwide total of $737.5 million, laughing its way past global totals for fellow DC Comics adaptations JUSTICE LEAGUE ($658 million) and MAN OF STEEL ($668 million) as it narrows in on SUICIDE SQUAD ($746 million).

Opening in third place was the new R-rated post-apocalyptic sequel ZOMBIELAND: DOUBLE TAP with $26.7 million.

The return of the sardonic ghoul-killing quartet (Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Jesse Eisenberg and Abigail Breslin) improved on the original ZOMBIELAND, which opened a decade ago with $24.7 million before shooting to $75.5 million domestic and $102 million worldwide.

Again directed by Ruben Fleischer (who also handled last year's smash VENOM), the brain-splattering horror-comedy follow-up cost a reported $42 million — almost double the original's budget.

The latest shambling mayhem didn't entirely satisfy critics, who gave it a 68% average on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 56. Take aim at the JoBlo review HERE.

In fourth place was THE ADDAMS FAMILY with $16 million, scaring away 47% of business from last weekend's opening. The PG-rated animated revival has a ten-day domestic total of $56.8 million, on a reported $40 million cost.

The Will Smith (times 2) action movie GEMINI MAN was in fifth place with $8.5 million, losing 56% of business from its soft opening last week. Director Ang Lee's PG-13 sci-fi thriller (filmed at 120 fps) has a ten-day domestic total of $36.5 million and $118.7 million worldwide on a reported cost of $138 million.

In sixth place was the animated Yeti movie ABOMINABLE with $3.5 million. On its fourth weekend, the PG-rated DreamWorks fantasy has a domestic total of $53.9 million and a worldwide total of $128.7 million, on a reported cost of $75 million.

The PG-rated British drama DOWNTON ABBEY was in seventh place with $3 million over its fifth weekend in theaters. The continuation of the popular TV show is at a domestic total of $88.6 million and a worldwide total of $164.1 million, on a reported $20 million cost.

In eighth place was the Judy Garland drama JUDY with $2 million. The PG-13 biopic starring Renee Zellweger has a domestic total of $19 million after four weekends.

The Jennifer Lopez/Constance Wu crime-comedy HUSTLERS was in ninth place with $2 million as the $20 million fact-based story now has a domestic total of $101.8 million domestic $125.4 million worldwide after six weekends.

Closing out the list was sewer-clown sequel IT: CHAPTER TWO with $1.5 million. After creeping out crowds for seven weekends, the R-rated Stephen King conclusion has a domestic total of $209.6 million and a worldwide total of $449 million on a reported $79 million cost.

Outside the chart, R-rated phone comedy JEXI logged off after one weekend in the Top 10, and the Brad Pitt astronaut thriller AD ASTRA drifted off into the cosmos.

In limited release, writer/director/star Taika Waititi's new period satire JOJO RABBIT started with an excellent $70k per-screen average. The PG-13 wartime comedy-drama (also featuring Scarlett Johansson and Sam Rockwell) currently holds a 77% critical average on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 54. The JoBlo review can be found HERE.

Also opening in limited release was the new Robert Pattinson/Willem Dafoe horror-drama THE LIGHTHOUSE with a strong per-screen average of $52k. The latest from THE WITCH director Robert Eggers left an impression with critics, who gave it a 93% average on Rotten Tomatoes and a score of 82 on Metacritic (check out the JoBlo review HERE).

And filmmaker Bong Joon ho's award-winning comedy-drama PARASITE continued to hook moviegoers in limited release, landing just outside the chart with $1.2 million on just 33 screens for a higher per-screen average than anything in the Top 10.

Next weekend has Naomie Harris and Tyrese Gibson in the crime thriller BLACK AND BLUE, the clock is ticking in the horror movie COUNTDOWN, and Benedict Cumberbatch and Michael Shannon compete for electric attention in THE CURRENT WAR.

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