Page 30 - ARUBA TODAY

A30 PEOPLE & ARTS
Monday 12 March 2018
‘Black Panther,’ 4 weeks in, tops ‘A Wrinkle in Time’

By LINDSEY BAHR what we can expect.”
AP Film Writer Still, “Black Panther” has de-
LOS ANGELES (AP) — T’Challa voured the marketplace for a
still rules the box office four month straight now, leaving
weeks in, even with the fresh all other newcomers in the
rivalry of another Walt Disney dust.
Studios release in “A Wrinkle The new horror film “The
in Time.” Strangers: Prey At Night,”
“Black Panther” took the No. with Christina Hendricks,
1 spot at the North American took third place with $10.5
box office with $41.1 million million. The Jennifer Law-
according to studio estimates rence thriller “Red Sparrow”
Sunday, leaving another new- landed in fourth in its sec-
comer in its wake. The Mar- ond weekend with $8.2 mil-
vel and Disney phenomenon lion and the comedy “Game
crossed the $1 billion mark Night” placed fifth with $7.9
worldwide this weekend and million in weekend three.
became the 7th highest gross- Hardly any of the new releas-
ing domestic release with es, which also included the
$562 million. Not accounting thriller “The Hurricane Heist”
for inflation, it’s now passed (8th place, $3.2 million) and
“The Dark Knight.” the dark action comedy “Grin-
With a marketplace still dom- go,” (11th place, $2.6 million)
inated by “Black Panther,” This image released by Disney and Marvel Studios’ shows Chadwick Boseman in a scene from were well-reviewed going
Disney faced some stiff com- “Black Panther.” into the weekend, save for
petition from its own studio Associated Press the limited release indepen-
in launching Ava DuVernay’s (it’s currently at a “rotten” 44 and a B CinemaScore which Hollis. “We’re feeling good dents like “Thoroughbreds,”
adaption of “A Wrinkle in percent on RottenTomatoes) opened to $33 million in the about this start ... We’re feel- which made $1.2 million from
Time,” which opened in sec- and audiences who gave it a early summer of 2015 and ing good about what, for 549 locations, and Armando
ond place with $33.3 million B CinemaScore. went on to gross $93 million us, is a little family competi- Iannucci’s “The Death of Sta-
from 3,980 locations. The PG- In gauging “A Wrinkle in domestically. “Tomorrow- tion between now and (the lin,” which opened in four
rated film, which cost around Time’s” long-term prospects, land,” however, notably cost Easter holiday).” Hollis says theaters to $181,000.
$103 million to produce and a somewhat similar compari- nearly twice as much to make he doesn’t think the studio It also left room for the Acad-
stars Oprah Winfrey and Re- son could be Disney’s “To- as “A Wrinkle in Time.” would have done anything emy Award best picture win-
ese Witherspoon, received morrowland,” a PG-rated sci- But the “Black Panther” ef- differently regarding “Wrin- ner “The Shape of Water,”
mixed reviews from critics fi pic with middling reviews fect is the x-factor here. For kle’s” release had they known which is also available on
Disney, it’s a “win all around.” the scope and longevity of home video, to capitalize on
“When you think about hav- “Black Panther’s” prospects. its post-Oscars stature. The
ing two films at the top of “There’s always going to be Fox Searchlight film added
the box office, it’s definitely competition in the market- 720 theaters and took in in
a win all around,” says Dis- place,” he says. “With a tent- $2.4 million from 1,552 loca-
ney’s worldwide theatrical pole strategy like ours, four tions, bringing its domestic
distribution president Dave weeks of separation is about total to $61 million..q

‘Wolf of Wall Street’ film company

to pay $60 million settlement

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The ing scheme was intended a crooked stock trader. The
production company behind to enrich top-level officials settlement also included for-
“The Wolf of Wall Street” has of the fund, including some feiture claims to the rights of
agreed to pay the U.S. gov- close to Malaysian Prime “Dumb and Dumber To” and
ernment $60 million to settle Minister Najib Razak. “Daddy’s Home.”
claims it benefited from a Money was diverted from the The film production company
massive Malaysian corruption fund to buy properties in New said in a statement that it
scandal. York and California, a $35 mil- was happy to put the matter
The settlement between lion jet, art by Vincent Van behind it so it could focus on
prosecutors and Red Granite Gogh and Claude Monet, and filmmaking.
Pictures Inc. was approved a $260 million yacht. The 1MDB case is the larg-
Thursday in U.S. District Court Proceeds also went to fund est single action the Justice
in Los Angeles. movies by Red Granite Pic- Department has taken un-
The case was part of an effort tures, which was co-founded der efforts to recover foreign
to recover more than $1 bil- by the stepson of Razak. bribery proceeds and embez-
lion prosecutors said was sto- The funds financed the Mar- zled funds and several other
len from 1MDB, a Malaysian- tin Scorsese-directed “The lawsuits are pending. Other
owned investment fund. The Wolf of Wall Street,” which countries including Singapore
Department of Justice said starred Leonardo DiCaprio in and Switzerland are conduct-
the complex money launder- a film about the excesses of ing probes.q