Universal Pictures Olga Kurylenko and Tom Cruise in “Oblivion.â€The celebrity tabloids continue to pick apart Tom Cruise; moviegoers continue not to care. “Oblivion,†Mr. Cruise’s latest big-screen adventure, was a stronger-than-expected No. 1 at North American theaters over the weekend, with ticket sales of about $38.2 million.
The PG-13 film, a dystopian science fiction thriller, has already taken in $112 million overseas, giving Mr. Cruise another global hit. “Oblivion†was expensive to make, however. Universal Pictures said it cost $120 million, but the Hollywood trade news site Deadline.com reported that the total budget may have been sharply higher.
The well-reviewed baseball drama “42†(Warner Brothers) was second for the weekend, taking in a robust $18 million, for a two-week total of $54.1 million, according to Hollywood.com, which compiles box office data. “The Croods†(20th Century Fox) chugged away in third place, selling about $9.5 million in tickets, for a five-week total of $154.9 million. “Scary Movie V†(Weinstein) and “G.I. Joe: Retaliation†(Paramount) rounded out the top five.
