Movie Monday: ‘Thunderbolts*’ Lands Another Box-Office Punch

New name, same old results.

Last Monday, Thunderbolts* kinda-sorta changed its name to The New Avengers thus explaining the original name’s asterisk and generating a whole new swathe of publicity in one fell swoop.

But at Plugged In, we’re sticking with Thunderbolts*. So it’s only fitting that the movie’s performance also looks awfully familiar.

Thunderbolts* once again won the weekend’s box-office crown. It earned an estimated $33.1 million in North America, which nudged its overall domestic take to $128.5 million. It’s done even better overseas, generating $143.7 million during its run. That means the superhero movie’s worldwide take stands at nearly $272.2 million. That’s not nearly as much as the old Avengers movies typically raked in, but no one at Disney/Marvel is likely complaining.

Sinners continued its remarkable run, finishing in second place. The Ryan Coogler-directed horror film sucked in another $21.1 million stateside, bringing its domestic tally to $214.4 million. It passed Captain America: Brave New World this weekend to become the year’s second highest-grossing film.

What’s the year’s highest-grossing film, you ask? Why, that’d be A Minecraft Movie, which nailed down another third-place finish. It dug up $8 million this weekend, padding its overall domestic total to $409 million. Add the $500.6 million it has made in international markets during its five-week run, and Minecraft has stacked a staggering $909.6 million. Who needs blocks when you can build a mighty fine tower with dollar bills?

The Accountant 2 held down fourth place, adding another $6.1 million to its ledgers. The R-rated actioner has earned $50.9 million.

In fifth place, we find the weekend’s first newcomer: Clown in a Cornfield earned dubious bragging rights in a disappointing batch of mostly R-rated newbies, scaring up nearly $3.7 million. Two other new films—Shadow Force and Fight or Flight—appear to be in a pitched battle for sixth place. Shadow Force has the lead, according to Box Office Mojo’s early estimates. But both barely cleared $2 million, so we’ll see how it shakes out when numbers are finalized early this week.

Juliet & Romeo dost struggled mightily in its opening frame. The latest updated take on Shakespeare’s famous play earned just $100,000, despite playing on 1,350 screens. To paraphrase the Bard … truly, never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet & Romeo.