'Zootopia' soars above the pack at US box office

The film about intrepid rabbit police officer Judy Hopps who works with a fox to solve a crime in the Zootopia animal kingdom had surpassed the 2013 Disney blockbuster "Frozen" on its opening weekend.

Paramount's "10 Cloverfield Lane" debuted in a distant in second place, with a better-than-expected estimate of US$25.2 million (RM103.4 million), industry tracker Exhibitor Relations said.

Producer J.J. Abrams has billed the low-budget horror movie – starring John Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead and John Gallagher Jr. – as a "spiritual sequel" to the original "Cloverfield," which stunned Hollywood with earnings of US$40.1 million (around RM164.5 million) during its opening weekend in 2008.

Superhero blockbuster "Deadpool" maintained its third spot for another week with US$10.8 million (RM44.3 million), contributing to its US$328 million (RM1.346 billion) take over five weeks.

Starring Ryan Reynolds as a foul-mouthed Marvel anti-hero, "Deadpool" clocked the fastest rise of any R-rated movie in history following its debut.

Gramercy's action thriller "London Has Fallen" fell to fourth place, earning US$10.7 million (RM43.9 million) during its second weekend. Directed by Iranian-Swedish filmmaker Babak Najafi and starring Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart and Morgan Freeman, the film is the sequel to 2013's "Olympus Has Fallen."

"Whiskey Tango Foxtrot" came in fifth place, earning US$4.6 million (RM18.8 million). The Paramount comedy starring Tina Fey, also in its second week, is based on Kim Barker's memoir about being a female war reporter in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Rounding out the rest of the top 10 were:

1. "The Perfect Match," US$4.2 million (RM17.2 million)

2. "The Young Messiah," US$3.4 million (around RM14 million)

3. "The Brothers Grimsby," US$3.2 million (RM13.1 million)

4. "Gods of Egypt," US$2.5 million (RM10.2 million)