LOS ANGELES: Coco gave Disney and Pixar much to be thankful for over the long Thanksgiving weekend, as the highly-reviewed animation led all comers on North American screens, according to industry estimates released Sunday.
The film, which tells the story of a 12-year-old Mexican, Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), who longs to become a musician but faces a generations-old family ban on music, netted an estimated US$49 million for the three-day weekend and US$71.2 million for the Wednesday-through-Sunday period, said Exhibitor Relations.
Coco, which takes Miguel into the magical Land of the Dead, where trickster Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal) helps him unravel a deep family secret, received a rare A+ rating from audiences surveyed by CinemaScore.
Disney and Pixar now claim the top six Thanksgiving openings of all time, according to HollywoodReporter.com, led by Frozen, with a five-day opening of US$93.6 million.
In second place this weekend was Warner Bros. film Justice League, with a three-day take of US$40.7 million in its second week out. The superhero flick has an all-star cast of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Ben Affleck as Batman and Henry Cavill as Superman, joining to fend off supervillain Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds).
In third was Lionsgate's feel-good film Wonder, with a better-than-expected net of US$22.3 million. The movie, starring Julia Roberts, Owen Wilson and Jacob Tremblay, tells the story of a fifth-grade boy with a facial deformity who must deal with other children's shock and bullying when he first attends a mainstream school.
Thor: Ragnarok, from Disney and Marvel, claimed a solid fourth place, at US$16.8 million. The film features the self-mocking humour of Chris Hemsworth as the powerful Norse god and Cate Blanchett as death goddess Hela.
Fifth place went to Christmas comedy Daddy's Home 2 from Paramount, at US$13.3 million. It stars Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg as the less-than-competent co-parents of Wahlberg's kids as they cope, as well, with their own visiting fathers (John Lithgow and Mel Gibson).
Rounding out the top 10 were:
Murder on the Orient Express (US$13 million)
The Star (US$6.9 million)
A Bad Moms Christmas (US$5 million)
Roman J. Israel, Esq. (US$4.5 million)
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (US$4.4 million) -- AFP