LOS ANGELES: Highly anticipated rom-com Crazy Rich Asians – the first Hollywood film with a mainly Asian cast in a generation – dazzled the North American box office in its debut weekend, claiming the top spot, industry estimates showed Sunday.
The Warner Bros. adaptation of Kevin Kwan's best-selling novel of the same name raked in US$34 million since hitting theatres on Wednesday, box office tracker Exhibitor Relations said. Of the total, the film took in US$25.2 million at the weekend.
Starring veteran actress Michelle Yeoh, British-Malaysian former BBC host Henry Golding and American sitcom star Constance Wu, the film tells the story of a American economics professor who meets her super-wealthy boyfriend's family in Singapore - and all the drama that ensues.
It is the first Tinseltown film with a predominantly Asian cast since The Joy Luck Club in 1993.
Shark thriller The Meg tumbled to second place in its second week, taking in US$21.2 million. It stars action movie regular Jason Statham as a rescue diver who tries to save scientists in a submarine from an attack by a huge, prehistoric shark.
Mile 22 – a new spy thriller-action flick starring Mark Wahlberg – opened in third place at US$13.6 million.
Another debut film, prehistoric adventure tale Alpha, shared fourth place at US$10.5 million with summer blockbuster Mission: Impossible – Fallout.
The latest instalment in the M:I franchise has now taken in US$180.7 million overall.
Rounding out the weekend's top 10 were:
Christopher Robin (US$8.9 million)
BlacKkKlansman (US$7 million)
Slender Man (US$5 million)
Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (US$3.7 million)
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (US$3.4 million)