‘Super Mario’ makes 2023 box office history

THE Super Mario Bros. Movie easily held its first-place position on North American movie screens this weekend while its accumulated global total pushed past the $1 billion mark, analysts said Sunday.

The video game-based film earned an estimated $40 million for the Fridaythrough-Sunday period in the United States and Canada for a domestic total so far of $490 million, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported. With overseas earnings now at $532 million, its accumulated global total has hit $1.02 billion.

That makes Super Mario – a joint project of Universal, Nintendo, and Illumination studios – the year’s first film to pass the billion-dollar mark and only the 10th animation ever to do so, according to the Hollywood Reporter

Second place, for the second straight weekend, went to bloody horror film Evil Dead Rise from Warner Bros., at $12.2 million. Lily Sullivan and Alyssa Sutherland play sisters battling a demonic crew known as the Deadites.

In third was Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, a new comedy-drama from Gracie Films and Lionsgate Films, at $6.8 million.

Based on the beloved Judy Blume novel of the same name, it stars Abby Ryder Fortson highlights was the Caluag House of Tomas Morato, Sr

Chris Pratt, who lends his voice to Mario (inset), attends a Los Angeles screening of 'The Super Mario Bros. Movie' on April 1 as Margaret Simon, a sixth-grader navigating the challenges of that awkward age. Rachel McAdams and Kathy Bates also star. Still strong in its sixth weekend out, Lionsgate’s neo-noir John Wick: Chapter 4 placed fourth at $5 million. Keanu Reeves plays the titular hitman.

The tour was long enough to digest what we had for lunch yet our hearts our full in appreciating the man-made lagoon and nature’s beauty. After an almost two-hour tour, we helped ourselves to enjoy Lucena’s Antonas Bread and Pastries owned by Emmanuel ‘Hobbie’ Enriques who brought his best-sellers chicken empanada, taco turnover, cheese rolls, and eclairs. My personal favorite is the creme brulee tart that literally melts in your mouth.

Overall, it felt really good to be back at events like ‘Kulinarya Tagala’ and see that we’re slowly getting to our life before where we’re free to explore the local cities and provinces and be knowledgeable about its culture, traditions, and food.

And showing the enduring lure of the Star Wars franchise, Disney’s re-release of Return of the Jedi placed fifth, taking in $4.8 million. The film starring icons Mark Hamill Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher marks its 40th anniversary in late May. It sold more than 80 million tickets in its initial run. AFP