'Straight Outta Compton' retains top spot at UK box office with $2.1m

UNIVERSAL

In the face of a whole host of new releases, Straight Outta Compton comfortably held the top spot at the UK box office.

Universal’s biopic enjoyed a $2.1m (£1.37m) second weekend for a ten-day tally of $8.9m (£5.8m) as it attempts to overtake The Italian Job’s $11.6m (£7.6m) result as director F. Gary Gray’s best-ever UK result.

The arrival of the likes of Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials and Legend this week will likely see Straight Outta Compton lose its grip on number one, but it should still prosper as counter-programming.

Also for Universal, Minions has now amassed $70.1m (£46m) following a $300,000 (£196,963) weekend, while Trainwreck has grossed $4.7m (£3.09m) after four weeks in play.

DISNEY

The children might be back at school but there’s still no stopping Inside Out as it remained in second for the fourth straight week.

Disney’s critically acclaimed animation fell a respectable 40% on its way to a $1.1m (£724,000) seventh weekend for $54.9m (£36.02m) to date. It’s currently the fourth highest grossing original animation of all time, and is well-placed to overtake Finding Nemo ($57.2m/£37.5m) and Monsters Inc ($57.8m/£37.9m) by the end of its run.

Indicative of how strong 2015 has been at the UK box office, Inside Out currently ranks as the fifth biggest release of the year to date. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was 2014’s fifth biggest release with $49.9m (£32.7m).

Also for Disney, Ant-Man has taken $24.7m (£16.22m).

EONE

The week’s highest new entry came in the form of No Escape in third.

eOne’s action thriller shot to $973,000 (£637,630), including just over $46,000 (£30,000) in previews from its 427 sites, a solid performance in the context of this week’s market.

It missed out on being director John Erick Dowdle’s best-ever UK bow though, which remains Devil’s $1.2m (£807,292) from 338 sites.

Also for eOne, Sinister 2 added $372,000 (£244,000) in its third weekend and has now scared up $4.9m (£3.2m).

PARAMOUNT

Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation crossed the £20m mark at the UK box office in its sixth week in play.

Paramount’s latest mission for Ethan Hunt continued its excellent run with $774,000 (£508,000) to reach $30.5m (£20.04m), and is the first Mission: Impossible outing to achieve the feat.

FOX

Rounding off this week’s top five was Fox’s Me and Earl and the Dying Girl with a $652,000 (£431,726) debut, including previews, from its 432 sites. It will hope that its overall positive reviews will see a healthy return mid-week to sustain its run.

Also for Fox, Hitman: Agent 47 posted a $450,000 (£295,195) second weekend after a hefty drop to reach $2.9m (£1.9m), while Secret Cinema’s production of The Empire Strikes Back crossed the £5m mark to stand at $7.9m (£5.2m).

Paper Towns has grossed $6.3m (£4.1m) after three weeks in play.

SONY

Outgrossing most of this week’s newcomers was Sony’s Pixels with a $603,000 (£395,000) fourth weekend for a decent $11.6m (£7.58m) to date.

Also for Sony, Ricki and the Flash was off-key with a $336,000 (£220,000) opening from its 354 sites, while Dope also suffered on its UK bow as it grossed $61,000 (£40,000) from its 103 sites.

ICON FILM DISTRIBUTION

In one of Icon Film Distribution’s widest releases since its relaunch, The Transporter Refuelled stalled with a soft non-final $533,000 (£350,438) from its 377 sites.

The action franchise reboot did manage to avoid being the lowest opening of the series which remains The Transporter’s $515,000 (£338,420) bow, though it’s worth noting that came from significantly less sites at 208.

ENTERTAINMENT

Nestled narrowly behind The Transporter Refuelled was another new release in the form of American Ultra.

Entertainment’s action comedy recorded a $530,000 (£347,401) debut, falling short of director Nima Nourizadeh’s debut feature Project X which landed with $858,000 (£561,655) from 332 sites.

Also for Entertainment, Southpaw and The Bad Education Movie have taken $13.1m (£8.6m) and $3m (£1.96m), respectively.

WARNER BROS

In its fourth weekend of release, Warner Bros’ The Man from U.N.C.L.E. added $497,000 (£325,625) for $9.1m (£5.96m) to date.

Also for Warner Bros, Vacation has now travelled to $2.5m (£1.64m) after three weeks in play.

CURZON ARTIFICIAL EYE

45 Years followed up its excellent opening with a non-final $351,000 (£229,933) second weekend for $1.4m (£917,145) to date through Curzon Artificial Eye.

SODA PICTURES

Including its Somerset House preview of $41,000 (£27,136), Soda Pictures’ The Second Mother opened with a non-final $64,000 (£41,966) from its 12 sites.

DOGWOOF

Receiving a SuperTicket release in the UK, Dogwoof’s Cartel Land posted a UK bow of $37,000 (£24,478), including $6,100 (£4,021) in previews, from its 27 sites.

STUDIOCANAL

Following its soft opening, StudioCanal’s We Are Your Friends unsurprisingly fell heavily on its way to a $33,000 (£21,465) second weekend for $801,000 (£524,714) to date.

MUNRO FILMS

With two sites still to report, Munro Films’ Miss Julie recorded a UK opening of $8,500 (£5,557), including previews, from its 16 sites, rising to $11,000 (£6,971) when including its three Irish sites which opened last week.

NEW WAVE FILMS

Released in seven sites through New Wave Films, Jafar Panahi’s Closed Curtain posted a UK debut of $3,300 (£2,167).

UPCOMING RELEASES

This week sees saturation releases for StudioCanal’s Legend (opens Sept 9), Fox’s Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (opens Sept 10) and Universal’s The Visit.

Warner Bros’ Irrational Man receives a wide release, while Picturehouse Entertainment’s How to Change the World, BFI Distribution’s Pasolini and eOne’s La Famille Belier are among the films receiving a limited release.