Horror movies topped the domestic box office charts and an Oscar contender got off to a sparkling start this weekend.<br>
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"Smile 2," in its first weekend, and "Terrifier 3" in its second proved to be the <br>
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big draws for general movie audiences in North America, while the Palme d´Or winner"Anora" got the best per-theater average in over a year.<br>
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"Smile 2" was the big newcomer, taking first place <br>
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with a better than expected $23 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.<br>
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Parker Finn returned to write and direct the sequel to the supernatural horror "Smile," his <br>
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debut. Originally intended for streaming, Paramount <br>
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pivoted and sent the movie to theaters in the fall of 2022.<br>
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"Smile" became a sleeper hit at the box office, earning some $217 million against a $17 <br>
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million budget.<br>
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The sequel, starring Naomi Scott as a pop star, was rewarded with a <br>
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bit of a bigger budget, and a theatrical commitment from the start.<br>
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Playing on 3,619 screens, it opened slightly higher than the first's $22 <br>
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million.<br>
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Second place went to Universal and DreamWorks Animation´s "The Wild Robot" in its fourth weekend with <br>
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$10.1 million, bumping it past $100 million in North America.<br>
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Family films often have long lives in theaters, particularly ones as <br>
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well reviewed as "The Wild Robot," and some have speculated that it got a bump this weekend from teenagers buying tickets for the <br>
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PG-rated family film and then sneaking into "Terrifier 3," which is not rated, instead.<br>
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Either way, Damien Leone´s demon clown movie, which cost only $2 million to produce, is doing more than fine with legitimate ticket buyers.<br>
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It added an estimated $9.3 million, bringing its total to $36.2 <br>
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million.<br>
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"Rumors like that are PR gold," said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore.<br>
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"There´s no better indication that that movie is red hot right now."<br>
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The No. 1 openings for "Smile 2" this weekend and "Terrifier 3" last were <br>
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only possible because of the failure of "Joker: Folie à Deux." That big <br>
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budget sequel continued its death march in its third weekend, falling another 69% to earn $2.2 <br>
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million, bringing its domestic total to $56.4 million.<br>
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This image released by Paramount Pictures shows Lukas Gage in a scene from "Smile 2." (Paramount Pictures via AP)<br>
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Warner Bros. has a better performer in "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice," which placed fourth in its seventh weekend with an additional $5 million, bringing its domestic <br>
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total to $284 million. Star Michael Keaton also had another film open this weekend - the father-daughter dramedy "Goodrich" which stumbled in with only $600,000 from 1,055 locations.<br>
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Rounding out the top five was the romantic <br>
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tearjerker "We Live In Time," which expanded to 985 theaters <br>
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following last weekend's debut on 5 screens.<br>
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The A24 release starring Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh <br>
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earned $4.2 million over the weekend. Audiences were 85% <br>
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under 35 and 70% female, according to exit polls. The well-reviewed <br>
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film will expand further next weekend.<br>
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One of the other brightest spots of the weekend was Sean Baker´s "Anora," which opened in six locations in New York and Los Angeles and <br>
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earned an estimated $630,000. That´s a $105,000 per <br>
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theater average, the best since "Asteroid City´s" <br>
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$142,000 average last summer. The Neon release, a sensation at Cannes and a likely Oscar contender, stars Mikey Madison as a New York sex worker who falls <br>
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for the son of a Russian oligarch.<br>
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After several weeks of would-be awards contenders and buzzy films ("Piece by Piece," "Saturday Night," "The Apprentice" among them) fizzling with audiences, "Anora´s" <br>
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success is a promising sign that moviegoers will still seek out arty, adult fare.<br>
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"For moviegoers, there´s a lot on offer with something in every type of movie in every category," Dergarabedian said.<br>
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"I think we´re going to have a really strong home stretch with a great combination of movies big and small."<br>
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The Walt Disney Co. also made a splash with several re-releases.<br>
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"The Nightmare Before Christmas" got a place in the top 10 with $1.1 million, while <br>
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"Hocus Pocus" made $841,000.<br>
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Next weekend will have a major studio comic book movie with "Venom: The Last Dance" as <br>
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well as an awards movie in the papal thriller "Conclave" vying for <br>
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audience attention.<br>
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Estimated ticket sales for Friday through <br>
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Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore.<br>
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Final domestic figures will be released Monday.<br>
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1. "Smile 2," $23 million.<br>
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2. "The Wild Robot," $10.1 million.<br>
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3. "Terrifier 3," $9.3 million.<br>
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4. "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice," $5 million.<br>
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5. "We Live In Time," $4.2 million.<br>
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6. "Joker: Folie à Deux," $2.2 million.<br>
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7. "Piece by Piece," $2.1 million.<br>
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8. "Transformers One," $2 million.<br>
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9. "Saturday Night," $1.8 million.<br>
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10. "The Nightmare Before Christmas," $1.1 million.<br>
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This image released by Paramount Pictures shows Naomi Scott <br>
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in a scene from "Smile 2." (Paramount Pictures via AP)<br>
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This image released by Paramount Pictures shows Ray Nicholson in a scene from "Smile 2." (Paramount Pictures via AP)<br>
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This image released by Neon shows Mikey Madison in a scene from "Anora." (Neon via AP)<br>
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This image released by Neon shows Mark Eydelshteyn and Mikey Madison, <br>
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right, in a scene from "Anora." (Neon via AP)<br>
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This image released by Neon shows Mark Eydelshteyn, left, and Mikey Madison in a scene from "Anora." (Neon via AP)<br>
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Horror movies topped the