Box office: ‘Avengers: Endgame Encore’ dominates with $11.2 million while A24’s ‘Primetime’ follows

It may have been just “Resident Evil” at the box office last week, but “Avengers: Endgame” is back on top — seven years later.

“Avengers: Endgame Encore” landed at No. 1 on Friday, earning $11.2 million from 3,060 North American screens. By Sunday, the Marvel juggernaut is expected to gross around $26 million.

Directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo, the re-release of the 2019 superhero film comes ahead of the highly anticipated “Avengers: Doomsday,” which hits theaters on December 18. At the time of its release, “Avengers: Endgame” became the second highest-grossing film in box office history, grossing $2.799 billion worldwide. (“Avatar” from 2009 currently holds the record with a worldwide gross of $2.9 billion).

A24’s highly anticipated “Primetime” took second place with $8.49 million from 2,874 locations. According to rival estimates, the drama thriller would gross $20.5 million over the weekend.

Starring Robert Pattinson, “Primetime” chronicles Chris Hansen’s time as host of Dateline NBC’s “To Catch a Predator.” Although the film has received positive reviews and word of mouth since its debut at the Venice Film Festival earlier this month, the real Hansen has been less than complimentary ahead of the film’s release. After seeing the film, Hansen called it “so bizarre and so outside of reality”, as well as “detached from reality”.

Newcomer “Heart of the Beast” earned an estimated $7.45 million from 3,435 domestic locations on Friday, ranking third at the domestic box office. The Brad Pitt-led adventure film was directed by David Ayer and stars the actor as a retired veteran who takes a 58-mile journey to safety after he and his fighting dog survive a plane crash in the Alaskan wilderness. The Paramount Pictures film is expected to gross $20 million domestically in its opening weekend.

“Resident Evil” fell to fourth place with $6.9 million from 3,684 sites. Based on Capcom’s popular horror video games, the Zach Cregger-directed film stars Austin Abrams as a medical courier who must deal with a zombie outbreak while making a delivery to Raccoon City General Hospital. “Resident Evil” had a franchise-best debut last weekend with a cumulative $61 million, and is expected to gross another $23.5 million in its second weekend in theaters.

“Forgotten Island” didn’t fare as high as other new releases at the box office, grossing $4.38 million from 3,548 screens. By Sunday, the Universal and DreamWorks Animation film is expected to gross a total of $11.5 million.

Directed by Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado, the animated film follows two friends as they “stumble upon a mysterious portal that transports them to the fantasy island of Nakali, filled with magical and mythological creatures that they grew up hearing stories about from their Filipino families,” according to the official logline. “When they discover that the memories of their entire friendship are the price they pay to return home, Jo and Raissa will race to find a way to leave the island before they forget each other forever.” HER, Dave Franco, Lea Salonga and Jenny Slate are part of the cast.