Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle dominates China box office with $40 million

Meryl Streep, Liam Neeson, Taraji P Henson and Paddington Bear and all rushed into movie theaters over the weekend, but Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle still roared the loudest over the weekend. The Sony action-adventure film dominated the Chinese box office, racking up a strong $40 million. It also staked out the top spot at the North American box office over the holiday weekend, gripping first place for the second straight week. [caption id=“attachment_4303515” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black and Dwayne Johnson in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. Sony[/caption] Variety reports that Jumanji, starring Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Karen Gillan and funnymen Jack Black and Kevin Hart, is now approaching $300 million domestically and, after grossing $40 million in China this weekend, a worldwide total of $667 million. It not only went past local hit The Ex-File 3: The Return of the Exes but also topped the $28.7 million debut weekend of Star Wars: The Last Jedi in the country. China is currently the world’s second biggest movie market after the US. Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle follows four high school teenagers, who are transported into a Jumanji video game as adult avatars and find themselves pursued by jungle creatures and motorcycle assailants. The first Jumanji told the story of a boy trapped in the magical board game for 26 years. He is released as a grown man (Robin Williams) when two children discover the game. With inputs from agencies