'The Croods: A New Age' tops Oscar-buzzy 'Judas and the Black Messiah' at the US box office

close

Video

Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines for February 15

Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. Check out what's clicking today in entertainment.

The animated family comedy "The Croods: A New Age" topped the North American box office for another week despite the release of Oscar contender "Judas and the Black Messiah." 

The animated film is a sequel to the 2013 comedy about a prehistoric family braving some of humanity’s most difficult times. The movie's main competition in its twelfth week in theaters was the buzzworthy dramatic film about Black Panther leader Fred Hampton. 

According to Variety, "The Croods: A New Age" raked in a little more than $2 million over the weekend, bringing its total up to roughly $49 million. While a modest showing in normal times, the number makes for a surprisingly high total during the coronavirus pandemic. The figure was enough to top "Judas and the Black Messiah," which reportedly drew in $2 million with a final opening weekend projection of about $2.4 million. 

'THE LITTLE THINGS' TOPS THE U.S. BOX OFFICE DESPITE ALSO RELEASING ON HBO MAX IN THE TIME OF THE CORONAVIRUS

'Judas and the Black Messiah' hit No. 2 at the U.S. box office. (Warner Bros.)

The win for "The Croods" comes with a bit of an asterisk as "Judas and the Black Messiah" is among the slew of 2021 releases that Warner Bros. rolled out both in theaters and on its HBO Max streaming platform. As a result, those interested in the film had the option to view it from the comfort of their own homes to avoid a slew of winter storms that moved from the midwest to the northeast last week. However, that obviously skews the data between the film’s overall reception and box office numbers. 

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER

Fortunately, that doesn’t mean that Warner Bros. bet isn’t paying off in the theaters that remain open in the United States. "Judas and the Black Messiah" is following the lead of "Wonder Woman: 1984" and "The Little Things," which both released recently in theaters and HBO Max but continue to chart on the North American Box office. "Wonder Woman: 1984" is expected to land the fourth spot on the charts while "The Little Things" takes No. 5.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

In addition to box office success, despite coming in below the family-friendly comedy, "Judas and the Black Messiah" is getting some highly coveted Oscar buzz for stars Daniel Kaluuya, Dominique Fishback and Lakeith Stanfield. As a result, its time in U.S. theaters may be more of a marathon than an opening weekend sprint.