‘Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2’ Soars Past ‘Fate Of The Furious’ At The Box Office

LOS ANGELES, (Variety.com) – And just like that, Star-Lord and his band of super buddies are back on top of the box office.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” blasted into domestic theaters this weekend to kick off the summer box office to the tune of $145 million at 4,347 locations. The latest from Disney and Marvel was expected to make $140 million, but possibly more by some analysts considering the studio’s track record and enthusiasm that the first go-around generated.

“We feel great. It is a spectacular number, period,” said Disney’s distribution chief Dave Hollis. “This is such a fresh and exciting film … it’s the kind of event that gets people excited about going to theaters.”

Returning to deliver more bright colors, wise-cracks and another groovy soundtrack, James Gunn directed and scripted the movie starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, and Bradley Cooper as the titular guardians. The film also features expanded roles for Karen Gillan and Michael Rooker, as well as prominent new characters played by Kurt Russell and Pom Klementieff. The movie functions as an escape thriller, and an origin story for Pratt’s Peter Quill (aka Star-Lord). Gunn is already attached to write and direct the third “Guardians” movie.

“Guardians 2” came into its opening domestic weekend with well over $100 million in the bank from international ticket sales. It made more than $106 million in its first weekend at 58 percent of overseas territories. This weekend the movie earned an estimated $124 million abroad after opening in several more major foreign markets including Korea, Russia and China. That raises the global weekend total to about $269 million and the movie’s total global take so far to $428 million.

The latest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe entered theaters with high expectations. When the original was released in 2014, it was a relatively unknown property that managed to smash records for the month of August when it opened to more than $94 million domestically (still modest by Disney/Marvel standards). But word-of-mouth kept building, and by the end of its theatrical run, it had raked in $333 million domestically and $440 million overseas.

“The strength of the brand is a license to take risks,” Hollis said, noting that the “Guardians” films are the perfect counter to any notion of superhero movie fatigue. “These films have never just been superhero films, they are genre films. Each of these movies feels wholly and uniquely different.”

Now the rag-tag group of heroes has entered the public consciousness. “Guardians 2” was struck with the double-edged sword of familiarity ― the original spawned a fondness and a fandom for the characters and their world (that led to a much larger opening for the second installment), but a sequel is hard-pressed to recreate or recapture the same type of surprise and enthusiasm that struck audiences in 2014.

“It’s all about strategy when it comes to Marvel and with ‘Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2,’ the notion of moving what was an August release for the first film to the key summer kick off spot in May clearly paid huge dividends for Disney,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at comScore. “For this ‘Guardians’ to post the sixth best bow for the month is incredibly impressive given the Cinderella story of the title’s ascension from being a little known question mark of a movie, to a global phenomenon.”

“Guardians 2” enjoyed the widest Imax opening ever ― 1,088 screen in 69 markets. The film made $25 million on Imax screens including $13 million in North America. $174 million of the movie’s global earnings this weekend came from 3D ticket sales, according to RealD, which was responsible for about $72 million of the take.

There isn’t much of note at the box office this weekend apart from “Guardians.” Universal’s “Fate of the Furious” cruised into second with $8.5 million at 3,595 theaters. The film now has over $207 million at the domestic box office. “The Boss Baby,” from Fox, took third with $6.2 million from 3,284 locations. Pantelion’s “How to be a Latin Lover,” which seduced its way past “The Circle” last weekend to post strong numbers and a second place finish, slides into fourth with $5.3 million from only 1,203 spots. And Disney’s other box office animal “Beauty and the Beast,” rounds out the top five with $5 million at 2,680 locations ― the movie is now in its eighth weekend of release.

In limited launch, the Orchard’s “The Dinner” made $669,000 from 509 locations. The new release is a thriller toplined by Richard Gere and Laura Linney, adapted from the Dutch novel of same name by Herman Koch about two couples with family issues. “3 Generations” got a six-theater limited release from the Weinstein Company, and made $20,000. The drama about identity and acceptance stars Naomi Watts, Susan Sarandon, and Elle Fanning as a transgender teen.

Get used to seeing “Guardians 2” on top. The big-budget superhero flick should coast past Warner Bros.’ “King Arthur: Legend of the Sword” next weekend, and possibly the following frame as well when it will face the long-awaited reboot from Fox, “Alien: Covenant.”

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Banksy Unveils Brexit-Inspired Mural Showing Dismantling Of EU Flag

Elusive British street artist Banksy has unveiled his latest artwork, one that depicts the dismantling of the European Union’s flag.

The massive blue and yellow mural appeared overnight in Dover, England on Sunday. The site is near a major ferry terminal that connects the U.K. with mainland Europe.

A post shared by Banksy (@banksy) on

Representatives for the artist, whose identity is not publicly known, confirmed to Reuters that it is by Banksy, whose verified Instagram account shared photos of the work.

In the painting, a worker is seen chipping away at one of the flag’s 12 stars, which are said to “stand for the ideals of unity, solidarity and harmony among the peoples of Europe,” according to the EU’s website.

“The number of stars has nothing to do with the number of member countries, though the circle is a symbol of unity,” the website states.

Dover, England.

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The painting comes nearly a year after the United Kingdom voted to leave the EU, in a vote commonly known as “Brexit.” It also appeared the same day that France held its presidential elections.

Far-right contender Marine Le Pen, who lost to independent moderate Emmanuel Macron, had promised to seek a similar exit from the EU if elected.

British tabloid, The Sun, which campaigned to leave the EU, beamed a sign reading “Dover & Out” last month over Dover’s white cliffs that greet ferry passengers. It appeared the same day that British Prime Minister Theresa May began the process of formally withdrawing the U.K. from the EU.

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’13 Reasons Why’ Will Return To Netflix With Season 2

After much speculation, Netflix has confirmed that their hit teen drama “13 Reasons Why” will have a second season. 

Executive producer Selena Gomez shared the news on social media Sunday, posting a teaser video with the caption, “Their story isn’t over. Season 2 of #13ReasonsWhy is coming.”

Their story isn't over. Season 2 of #13ReasonsWhy is coming.

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“13 Reasons Why,” based on the best-selling book by Jay Asher, follows the story of teenager Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford), who takes her own life. She records 13 tapes to give to the people she says played some part in her decision, leaving her friend Clay (Dylan Minnette) to uncover the heartbreaking reality behind her death. 

The show has faced its fair share of controversy, as many were taken aback by the graphic scenes depicting suicide and sexual assault featured in Season 1. But despite the pushback, “13 Reasons Why” was a giant success for Netflix and quickly became the most-tweeted about show of 2017.

“I believed in the project for so long and I understood what the message was,” Gomez said of the project. “I just wanted it to come across in a way that kids would be frightened, but confused ― in a way that they would talk about it because it’s something that’s happening all the time. So, I’m overwhelmed that it’s doing as well as it’s doing.”

Reports about a second season have been swirling for weeks, with the show’s stars saying there was more story to tell. 

“I honestly did not realize how much was going to be left open at the end. I think that there’s potential to know more about these characters and I think that there are good stories to be told,” Minnette recently told Entertainment Weekly.

No news yet on what the new season will cover, but some of the stars of the show are set to attend the MTV Movie & TV Awards Sunday night, so perhaps we’ll find out more. 

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Chris Pine Tries To Settle ‘Hollywood Chris’ Debate Once And For All

Unless you’re a really dedicated fan of the Chrises in Hollywood, you have to admit it’s hard to keep them all straight. 

There’s Captain America, Chris Evans; Thor, Chris Hemsworth; Star-Lord, Chris Pratt; and Captain Kirk/Steve Trevor, Chris Pine

Got that? No? OK. Well, let Chris Pine help you out. 

During his opening monologue on “Saturday Night Live” this weekend, Pine performed a musical number set to Billy Joel’s “Uptown Girl” in hopes of helping viewers finally figure out which superhero Chris he is.

Pine sang, “I’m not that Chris / I look just like him, but I’m not that Chris / Not Pratt or Hemsworth / I’m a different guy / Not Evans either / I’m my own cool vibe.” (Nope, he’s not Ryan Reynolds, either.) 

Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon made cameos in the bit to keep the joke going before Pine finally belted out, “I’mmmmmmm Chris Pine!” 

Watch the full segment above.

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