Furious 7 among highest grossing movies, surges past the $1 billion mark

“Furious 7” surged ahead of its North American box office competition for a third straight week, taking in an estimated $29 million to hit $1 billion in worldwide ticket sales. The strong weekend showing gives the car racing action flick a $294 million haul in the US and Canada since its release and giving the movie certifiable blockbuster status. The franchise of all seven “Fast and Furious” films has brought in a record-breaking $3.39 billion, NBCUniversal said. [caption id=“attachment_2076027” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  YouTube screengrab[/caption] Slapstick comedy “Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2” starring debuted in the second spot with $24 million in estimated sales, and stars Kevin James as the hapless, scooter-driving security guard. Another newcomer, “Unfriended,” took third on the charts with $16 million in sales, box office tracker Exhibitor Relations said. The social media horror flick starring Heather Sossaman finds a chat room of friends haunted by an online account of a dead friend. Animated children’s film “Home,” about an unpopular space alien forced to flee his own kind, earned the fourth spot on the chart with $10.3 million in estimated sales. The film, featuring the voices of celebrities Rihanna and Jennifer Lopez, has brought in $142.6 million overall. In its second week, romance novel adaptation “The Longest Ride,” brought in $6.85 million for the fifth spot following its third place debut. The movie stars Scott Eastwood, the son of actor-director Clint Eastwood. The Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart buddy comedy “Get Hard” about a prison-bound investment banker and car washer took in $4.8 million for the sixth spot on the chart. New nature documentary “Monkey Kingdom,” narrated by actress Tina Fey, made its debut in the seventh box office spot with $4.7 million in sales. The film follows a newborn and mother toque macaque in the wilds of Sri Lanka. In eight place with $4.6 million was “Woman in Gold,” the true story of an elderly Holocaust survivor trying to get back her Nazi-looted artwork from Austria. Action-packed “Insurgent,” the second film based on Veronica Roth’s best-selling “Divergent” book series, came in ninth place, adding $4.1 million for $120.6 million after five weeks on the charts. The live-action reboot of “Cinderella” took 10th place, with $3.9 million in estimated ticket sales. The Disney film has been on the charts for six weeks, bringing in a total of $186.3 million. AFP