"San Andreas" shook up the weekend box office by taking in an estimated $53.2 million domestically – some $13 million more than experts predicted – and was the biggest opening for Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as a lead actor.
Johnson, who co-stars in the worldwide mega-hit "Furious 7," stands to become Hollywood's newest most bankable star with the strong showing from the earthquake thriller,
reported CNN Money.
"This was clearly a winning combo of star+concept, as audiences flocked to see The Rock save his family (and only his family) from a massive California-destroying earthquake,"
wrote Scott Mendelson of Forbes magazine.
"Audiences came not just to see an earthquake but to see The Rock square off against said quake. As a result, you get what will be one of the larger debuts for a disaster film, especially one that doesn't involve aliens or monsters," said Mendelson.
While the film did not do well with movie critics, according to CNN Money, it scored an A-minus with movie-going audiences who saw the flick, compared to "Aloha," which received a B-minus, according to
CinemaScore.com.
"Aloha," starring Bradley Cooper, Emma Stone and Bill Murray, earned $10 million in movie receipts over the weekend,
according to Box Office Mojo.com.
Variety reported that "San Andreas" grabbed $60 million more in international markets for an overall weekend of $113 million-plus.
"Warner Bros. said the foreign roll-out, which represented markets with between 50 percent and 60 percent of the international box office, included first place finishes in 55 countries," said Variety.
"Mexico delivered the top foreign total with $10 million at 3,100 screens for the second-biggest launch for a Warner Bros. title and the biggest ever opening for a disaster movie in the country," said Variety. "The U.K. followed with $6.7 million at 840 locations, followed by Russia with $5.2 million at 2,256 theaters."
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