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A30 PEOPLE & ARTS
Monday 28 october 2019

For an encore, 'Joker' is No. 1 again at

the box office

By JAKE COYLE ing for inflation, in world- tury lighthouse keepers,
NEW YORK (AP) — Put on a wide release. It's made made $3 million on just 586
happy face. "Joker" is No. 1 $849 million globally, includ- screens for A24.
again. ing $47.8 million interna- Taika Waititi's "Jojo Rabbit,"
Todd Phillip's R-rated com- tionally over the weekend. about a 10-year-old boy
ic-book hit regained the (Mel Gibson's "The Passion growing up in Nazi Ger-
top spot at the weekend of the Christ" remains the many, expanded into 55
box office in its fourth week R-rated domestic leader, theaters, earning a strong
of release, narrowly besting with $370.8 million.) $1 million. In September,
"Maleficent: Mistress of Evil." Despite mixed reviews, the Fox Searchlight release
This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Joaquin The Warner Bros.' sensation, "Joker" — a "Taxi Driver"- won the Toronto Film Festi-
Phoenix in a scene from the film "Joker." starring Joaquin Phoenix, styled spin on a comic- val's highly predictive audi-
Associated Press took in $18.9 million in ticket book origin story — has ence award , setting it up
sales over the weekend, already amassed a box- as a potential Academy
according to studio esti- office total exceeding that Awards favorite. Its initial
mates Sunday. of more mainstream super- expansion suggests it will
That came in just above hero movies such as "Thor: be a hit with audiences,
the $18.6 million haul for the Ragnarok" and "Wonder too.
Walt Disney Co.'s "Malefi- Woman." Less successful was the
cent" sequel, which slid to No new releases mustered Bruce Springsteen con-
second after a disappoint- any competition with the cert film "Western Stars"
ing No. 1 debut last week- holdovers. The best-per- ($560,000 in 537 theaters).
end of $36 million. "Mistress forming newcomer was Alfonso Gomez-Rejon's "The
of Evil," starring Angelina the STX Entertainment hor- Current War" also finally
Jolie, is performing better ror thriller "Countdown." landed in theaters more
overseas, where it grossed It grossed $9 million. Sony than two years after it first
$64.3 million over the week- Screen Gems' "Black and premiered. Gomez-Rejon
end. Blue," a police thriller star- recut his film after Harvey
With such a close race at ring Naomie Harris, opened Weinstein, shortly before
the top between "Joker" with $8.3 million. his downfall, pushed out a
and "Mistress of Evil," the or- Holding especially well critically panned version of
der could switch when final was "The Addams Family," the Thomas Edison (Bene-
figures are released Mon- United Artists and MGM's dict Cumberbatch) and
day. Halloween-timed animat- George Westinghouse (Mi-
But ticket sales have con- ed reboot of the maca- chael Shannon) tale. Go-
tinued to surge well past bre family. It slid just 28% in mez-Rejon's "director's cut,"
expectations for "Joker." its second weekend with which 101 Studios acquired
With a modest budget of $11.7 million, good for third from the now-defunct
$60 million, it's been ex- place Weinstein Co., opened
traordinarily profitable for Much of the weekend's with $2.7 million from about
Warner Bros. — although action was in limited or ex- 1,000 theaters.
the studio, to mitigate risk, panding releases for ac- "Terminator: Dark Fate,"
shared costs with Bron Stu- claimed Oscar contenders. which is expected to lead
dios and Village Roadshow Robert Eggers' "The Light- the box office next week-
Pictures. house," a black-and-white end, got off to a $12.8 mil-
This week, "Joker" became psychological drama star- lion start in a handful of in-
the most successful R-rated ring Willem Dafoe and Rob- ternational markets before
moved ever, not account- ert Pattinson as 19th cen- its stateside debut.q

Boundary-pushing Dave Chappelle set

to receive comedy award

WASHINGTON (AP) — the Arts and filmed his first larity, Chappelle shocked
Boundary-pushing come- HBO special in the capital. the entertainment industry
dian Dave Chappelle is Chappelle was already a by walking away from a lu-
the latest recipient of the well-established comedian crative contract extension
Mark Twain prize for lifetime and comedic actor when and abandoning the show
achievement in comedy, he was given his own sketch while it was preparing for its
an honor being bestowed comedy show in 2003. The third season.
Sunday night at the Kenne- show on Comedy Central, He disappeared from pub-
dy Center for the Perform- "Chappelle's Show," was an lic view and took an ex-
ing Arts in Washington. immediate hit. It combined tended trip to Africa. He
The event is a homecom- clever parodies that often later explained that the
ing for Chappelle, who was tweaked racial conven- pressures of the show's suc-
raised in suburban Silver tions with uniquely staged cess and the influence ap-
Spring, Maryland, attend- musical productions featur- plied by the network made
ed Washington's prestigious ing hip-hop and soul artists. him feel "like some kind of a
Duke Ellington School of At the height of his popu- prostitute."q