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PEOPLE & ARTS Tuesday 27 december 2016
‘Rogue One’ tops new releases to dominate holiday box office

SANDY COHEN with $16.7 million. The vid-
AP Entertainment Writer eo-game adaptation “As-
LOS ANGELES (AP) — It was sassin’s Creed” debuted in
an intergalactic holiday at fifth place with $15 million.
movie theaters as “Rogue “Star Wars” also dominat-
One” blasted past a spate ed the holiday box office
of new releases to hold last year with “The Force
onto the top spot at the Awakens.”
weekend box office. “Mid-December is kind of
The “Star Wars” story add- a magic time to release a
ed another $96 million to its big franchise film,” Derga-
coffers over the four-day rabedian said, noting that
holiday period, according the top-grossing films of
to studio estimates Mon- all time, “Avatar” and “Ti-
day. “The power of the tanic,” also opened in mid-
‘Star Wars’ brand made it December.
the odds-on favorite to be Half a dozen other films ei-
the No. 1 film on Christmas ther opened or expanded
weekend despite a mas- over the holiday week-
sive amount of competi- end. Denzel Washington’s
tion,” said Paul Dergarabe- adaptation of August Wil-
dian, senior media ana- son’s “Fences” expanded
lyst for box-office tracker on Sunday, earning $11.37
comScore. That left the million over the four-day
weekend’s many new re- weekend, good for sixth
leases in a race for second place. This image released by Lucasfilm Ltd. shows Felicity Jones as Jyn Erso in a scene from, “Rogue
place. The animated ani- While still in limited release, One: A Star Wars Story.”
mal musical “Sing” claimed the celebrated musical “La Associated Press
that spot, debuting to $56 La Land” opened in 534 Martin Scorsese’s “Silence,” ematic presents under the aters, according to com-
million. The Jennifer Law- additional theaters and J.A. Bayona’s dark fantasy Christmas tree, it was hard Score. Where available,
rence-Chris Pratt space finished the weekend in “A Monster Calls,” Ben Af- to keep track,” Dergarabe- the latest international
tale “Passengers” opened eighth place. fleck’s “Live By Night” and dian said. numbers for Friday through
in third place with $23.1 Also opening over the long the NASA drama “Hidden Estimated ticket sales for Monday are also included.
million, followed by the R- holiday weekend: Pedro Figures.” Friday through Monday at Final domestic figures will
rated comedy “Why Him?” Almodovar’s “Julieta,” “There were so many cin- U.S. and Canadian the- be released Tuesday.q