Pixar's Coco works its magic for third straight week, stays at top of box office in North America

The Disney-Pixar animated comedy Coco showed serious staying power this weekend in North American theaters, holding top spot for its third week running while taking in an estimated $18.3 million, industry website Exhibitor Relations reported. The colorful film tells the story of Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), a young Mexican who longs to become a musician despite his family’s unrelenting ban on music. He stumbles into the Land of the Dead, where trickster Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal) helps him unravel a surprising family secret.

Coco has taken in $135.5 million since its release over the long Thanksgiving weekend, and is already the top-grossing film ever in Mexico. It is one of just four films to lead the North American box office for three weekends in a row this year, according to Variety.com. But that is expected to change with the much-anticipated release next week of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, predicted to net up to a mammoth $200 million in its opening weekend. [caption id=“attachment_4252885” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  A still from Coco/Image from Twitter.[/caption] Second on North American screens this weekend was Warner Bros.’s Justice League, taking in $9.6 million, for a four-week total of $212 million. Its all-star cast features Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Ben Affleck as Batman, Henry Cavill as Superman and Jason Momoa as Aquaman, plus Ciaran Hinds as a supervillain. Third was Lionsgate’s feel-good film Wonder, which netted $8.5 million. The movie, starring Julia Roberts, Owen Wilson and Jacob Tremblay, tells the story of a determined fifth-grade boy with a facial deformity who must deal with rudeness and bullying by schoolmates. Shooting up to fourth place was The Disaster Artist, distributed by A24, a comedy-drama directed by James Franco about the making of 2003 cult movie The Room, reputedly one of the worst films ever (it made a grand total of $2,000 when first released). Starring Franco, Seth Rogen and Alison Brie, The Disaster Artist took in $6.4 million for the weekend. And in fifth was Thor: Ragnarok, featuring the self-effacing humor of Chris Hemsworth as the powerful Norse god and Cate Blanchett as death goddess Hela. The Disney film netted $6.3 million, bumping up its six-week total to $301 million. Rounding out the list were:

1. Coco, $18.3 million ($55.3 million international).

2. Justice League, $9.6 million ($15.4 million international).

3. Wonder, $8.5 million ($11.4 million international).

4. The Disaster Artist, $6.4 million ($1 million).

5. Thor: Ragnarok, $6.3 million ($3.1 million international).

6. Daddy’s Home 2, $6 million ($11.6 million international).

7. Murder on the Orient Express, $5.1 million ($20.1 million international).

8. The Star, $3.7 million.

9. Lady Bird, $3.5 million.

10. Just Getting Started, $3.2 million.

With inputs from agencies