‘Inside Out 2’ tops N. American box office for third weekend

LOS ANGELES — “Inside Out 2” kept its number one spot at North American box offices for the third weekend in a row, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported Sunday, stalked closely by the latest installment in the “Quiet Place” horror franchise.

The film pulled in $57.4 million over the weekend, for a total haul of $469 million since its June 14 theatrical release — continuing its sweep despite struggles in the overall market, noted analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research.

“In spite of record-breaking numbers from ‘Inside Out 2’ and an excellent performance by ‘Planet of the Apes’, the June domestic [box office] was down -20.8 per cent compared with the pre-pandemic average,” Gross said.

The coming-of-age film again takes place largely inside the mind of a girl named Riley, as she grapples with new feelings on starting high school.

Emotions such as Envy and Anxiety join the existing, talkative residents of her young head, including Joy and Sadness, all of them voiced by actors including Amy Poehler and Phyllis Smith.

Close behind was Paramount’s “A Quiet Place: Day One”, the third installment in the apocalyptic horror series, starring Kenyan-Mexican actress Lupita Nyong’o, which garnered $53 million in its debut weekend.

Gross called it “an outstanding opening for the 3rd episode in a horror series”, though he noted critic and audience reviews were down from the previous chapter.

“Only 13 horror series have moved on to a fourth episode. That list is going to get longer now.”

Also debuting was “Horizon: An American Saga”, from Warner Bros., which took third in box offices with a much smaller $11 million.

The American Western epic is the first installment in the new series, directed by and starring Kevin Costner, with a sequel expected in August.

Meanwhile the rowdy Will Smith action comedy “Bad Boys: Ride or Die”, dropped from second to fourth place, with the feature pulling in $10.3 million.

Sony’s fourth installment of the series is a major step in Smith’s career rehabilitation after he slapped Chris Rock at the Academy Awards in 2022 — a sign that audiences are ready to welcome him back.

Fifth place went to “Kalki 2898 AD,” a Telugu-language science fiction film from India’s Prathyangira Cinemas, which earned $5.5 million.

The mythological tale, with a blockbuster Indian cast, is the first film in a larger cinematic universe planned by the creators.