Even though one of the new competitors was actually named 12 Strong, nothing that arrived at the American box office proved to be as tough as Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle, which continued to see off all comers. The action comedy took in $20 million (a drop of just 28 percent), according to studio estimates.
With $316.9 million in the bank Stateside and a global total of more than $767 million, Jumanji is proving to be a powerhouse, while also benefitting from a seeming lack of worthy competition at this quiet time of year where the focus is on awards films over blockbuster entertainment.
And despite its hoo-rah patriotism about American soldiers on horseback in Afghanistan post-9/11, 12 Strong only managed a second place launch with $16.5 million. Gerard Butler's latest, Den Of Thieves snuck in at third place with $15.3 million.
The Post dropped a couple of places to fourth, earning $12.1 million, while The Greatest Showman rounded out the top five on $11 million.
Paddington 2 continued to get less love than it truly deserved from US audiences, falling one place to sixth and $8.2 million, yet was still strong enough to land above The Commuter, which tumbled from third to seventh, making $6.6 million in the process.
At eighth was Star Wars: The Last Jedi, adding $6.5 million and crossing the $600 million threshold domestically. Insidious: The Last Key was down to ninth via $5.9 million and new romantic drama arrival Forever My Girl limped into the charts with $4.7 million.
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