Marvel phenomenon slips to third place, but becomes first of 2014 to cross $300 million
After a long stay at or near the top of the box-office, Marvel’s Guardians of The Galaxy dropped to third place Friday night as more heavily-promoted new releases finally began returning to U.S. theaters. With it’s #1 spot gone, the once-thought “risky” scifi/comedy blockbuster will have to make do with another honor: Becoming the first film of 2014 to earn over $300 Million in domestic ticket-sales (with worldwide total cume nearing $600 Million.)
Replacing Guardians at #1 was the new release No Good Deed, a home-invasion thriller starring Idris Elba as a psychotic escaped convict menacing a woman (Taraji P. Henson) and her two children. The modestly-budgeted film was bolstered by a heavy marketing campaign and gossip surrounding a “twist” supposedly so shocking that the studio canceled press-screenings at the last minute in order to preserve it. Second place was claimed by Dolphin Tale 2, the second film in a family series about the care and rehabilitation of a dolphin with a prosthetic tail fin.
The overall box-office remains down from the previous year, with many analysts hoping that next week’s release of the young-adult adaptation The Maze Runner will provide the first major boost in a month.
Source: Deadline
