- US trade chief defends tariff hikes when paired with investment
- EU court blocks French ban on vegetable 'steak' labelling
- Meta AI turns pictures into videos with sound
- US dockworkers return to ports after three-day strike
- DR Congo to begin mpox vaccination campaign Saturday in east
- Meta must limit data use for targeted ads: EU court
- Oil extends gains, jobs report lifts Wall Street
- US hiring soars past expectations in sign of resilient market
- As EU targets Chinese cars, European rivals sputter
- Top EU court finds against FIFA in key transfer market ruling
- Oil extends gains, Hong Kong stocks resume rally
- 'A man provides': Ukrainian miners send families away as Russia advances
- EU states greenlight extra tariffs on EVs from China
- Hong Kong stocks resume rally, oil dips after Middle East-fuelled surge
- Crude stable after Israel-Iran surge, Hong Kong stocks resume gains
- Hera spacecraft to probe asteroid deflected by defence test
- US dockworkers to head back to work after tentative deal
- After Helene's destruction, North Carolina starts to rebuild
- Dockers end three-day strike at Montreal port
- What next for OpenAI after $157 billion bonanza?
- Israel-Hamas war causes 86-percent dive in Gaza GDP: IMF
- Milan's Morata moves house after Inter-fan town mayor 'violates' privacy
- 'Devastating' storm hits Augusta National but Masters will go on
- Relief in Brazil, Asia over delay to EU deforestation rules
- Oil prices jump, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Biden says 'discussing' possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities
- Oil prices rise, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Oil rallies, stocks mostly retreat on Middle East tensions
- Phasing out teen smoking could save 1.2 mn lives: study
- 'Welcome relief': Asia producers hail EU deforestation law delay
- Japan PM slated to announce plans for 'happiness index'
- Turkish inflation falls less than expected in September at 49.4%
- Easing inflation lifts profit at UK supermarket Tesco
- Skiing calls on UN climate science to combat melting future
- China wine industry looks to breed climate resilience
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong drops after surge
- Dutch airline KLM unveils 'firm' cost-cutting measures
- Carpe diem: the Costa Rican women turning fish into fashion
- Senegal looks to aquaculture as fish stocks dwindle
- Will AI one day win a Nobel Prize?
- Climate change, economics muddy West's drive to curb Chinese EVs
- Argentina's Milei vetoes university budget after huge protests
- TotalEnergies plans to grow oil and gas production until 2030
- 2024 Nobels offer glimmer of hope as global crises mount
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong reverses after surge
- Tunisia readies for vote as incumbent Saied eyes victory
- High childcare costs in US weigh on women's employment
- US voters seek help with crushing childcare costs
- Taiwan shuts down for second day as Typhoon Krathon to land
- Supercharged storms: how climate change amplifies cyclones
Sony issues 'Invitation'; not many filmgoers RSVP
New Sony horror film "The Invitation" topped the North American box office this weekend despite extremely weak ticket sales of just $7 million, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported Sunday.
Its estimated total for the Friday-through-Sunday period was the lowest first-place finish in 15 months and came on what Variety called a "catastrophically slow weekend," as Hollywood's healthy June and July numbers have dropped off in August.
Fortunately for Sony, "The Invitation" cost a mere $10 million to produce. "Reviews are poor," analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research said, "but that isn't necessarily a deterrent" in the horror genre.
Nathalie Emmanuel and Thomas Doherty star in the Dracula-inspired tale.
In second, up one spot from last weekend, was Sony's action-thriller "Bullet Train," at $5.6 million. Brad Pitt stars in the story of a perilous journey on a train overloaded with assassins.
Third place went to action-adventure "Beast," from Universal Pictures, at $4.9 million. Idris Elba stars as a recently widowed man who takes his daughters on safari only to be hunted by a huge rogue lion.
"Top Gun: Maverick" continued to defy gravity, drawing in $4.8 million in its 14th week out for a fourth-place finish.
But last weekend's top film, "Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero" from Crunchyroll, seems to have flown into a wall. Its ticket sales dropped 78 percent from its opening weekend, to a fifth-place showing of just $4.6 million.
Rounding out the top 10 were:
"DC League of Super-Pets" ($4.2 million)
"Three Thousand Years of Longing" ($2.9 million)
"Minions: The Rise of Gru" ($2.7 million)
"Thor: Love and Thunder" ($2.7 million)
"Where the Crawdads Sing" ($2.3 million)
M.Mendoza--CPN