$21 million to become the second best labor day debut of all time after Halloween, which opened with $30.6 million in 2007.Based on a true story and inspired by films such as The Exorcist, Possession follows a man who bought a wine box possessed by a demon at an estate sale in Portland. The film stars Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Kyra Sedgwick and directed by Ole Bornedal.Another debut, Prohibition-era drama Lawless landed in the second place with $13 million over the weekend. The film has grossed a total of $15.1 million since its release, 6 days ago.
Starring Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf, Jessica Chastain, Guy Pearce and Mia Wasikowska, Lawless tells the story of three brothers who get engaged into a bloody war with the authorities and the mafia in order to protect their liquor bootlegging business.
Last week’s box office champion The Expendables 2 dropped to the third spot domestically and overseas. The action sequel grossed $8.8 million in the US, pushing its domestic cume to $68.5 million. It’s total international taking stands at $75 million.
The Bourne Legacy followed in the 4th place with $7.3 million, bringing its total gross to $98.4 million. The action sequel has also dropped to the 6th place in the international market with $12.6 million, reaching an overseas total of $61.3 million.
The anti Obama documentary 2016 Obama’s America continues to surprise, advancing to the 8th spot and adding another $5.6 million over the holiday break to reach a total of $20.3 million.
This summer season ended down -2.7% from last year, however there was also some bright news. Marvel’s The Avengers worldwide gross passed the $1.5 billion milestone this weekend
and The Dark Knight rises, which was almost sunk by a tragedy on the eve of its opening, passed the $1 billion global box office to become the 11th film to do so. Helped by its recent release in China, Chris Nolan’s final Batman installment was also number 1 in the foreign market, racking $46.4 million over the weekend.
The Amazing Spider-Man also benefited from its opening in China, jumping to the second spot in the international box office with $33.7 million. The foreign cume for the tentpole stands at $475.4 million.