Monday, November 26, 2018
‘Wreck-It Ralph,’ ‘Creed’ fuel record holiday box office
LOS ANGELES
Movie sequels are having their own Thanksgiving feast at the box office and fueling record industry-wide grosses for the weekend.
“Ralph Breaks the Internet” and “Creed II” took the top two spots on the North American charts, beat the openings for the original films and helped the five-day Thanksgiving box office totals cross the $300 million mark for the first time.
Studios on Sunday said Disney’s “Wreck-It Ralph” sequel earned an estimated $55.7 million over the three-day weekend and $84.5 million since its Wednesday opening to take first place and become one of the biggest Thanksgiving openings of all time.
Its five-day Thanksgiving grosses are the third highest of all time, behind “Frozen” and “Hunger Games: Catching Fire.”
The Rocky spinoff “Creed II,” starring Michael B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone, placed second with $35.3 million from the weekend and $55.8 million since Wednesday, far surpassing the first film’s Thanksgiving debut in 2015.
Rounding out the top five were: “Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch,” $30.2 million, third place; “Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald,” $29.7 million, fourth place; and “Bohemian Rhapsody,” $13.9 million, fifth place.
Magician and actor Ricky Jay, of ‘Boogie Nights,’ dies at 72
NEW YORK
Ricky Jay, a magician, historian of oddball entertainers and actor who appeared in “Boogie Nights” and other films, has died. He was 72.
Jay died of natural causes at his home in Los Angeles, according to his manager Winston Simone. Jay died Saturday.
Jay appeared in several films and television series, including as a cameraman in “Boogie Nights”; in “Magnolia” and “Tomorrow Never Dies”; and in HBO’s “Deadwood.” He consulted on “Ocean’s Thirteen” and “Forrest Gump” and collected rare books on unusual entertainers and performers dating back hundreds of years.
His one-man shows played to packed audiences, where his sleight-of-hand artistry impressed even fellow magicians. In one famous trick, he would pierce a watermelon with a card flung through the air.
Associated Press