Superhero 'Blue Beetle' takes over North American box office

Blue Beetle topped the box office chart for the three days from August 18-20, earning $25.4 million.

DC Studios/Warner Bros' superhero rookie "Blue Beetle" (title in Vietnam: "Blue Beetle") took the top spot at the North American box office last weekend.

According to figures released by Exhibitor Relations, the film topped the box office charts for three days from August 18-20, earning $25.4 million.

However, this is the lowest revenue in this era for a superhero debut, and much lower than the loss-making "Wonder Woman 1984" in 2021.

In "Blue Beetle," 22-year-old actor Xolo Mariduena, who is of Mexican, Cuban and Ecuadorian descent, plays college graduate Jaime Reyes, who returns to his home country of Mexico to find work.

Once, while working at the mansion of Victoria Kord - President of the Kord Industries weapons manufacturing corporation, Jaime was accidentally assigned to keep a box containing the mysterious green Scarab beetle.

After being unexpectedly chosen by Scarab as a host to parasitize, Jaime suddenly gains superhuman strength, but this leads to a series of events for him and his family.

Unlike many films with the same theme, "Blue Beetle" scores with a story rich in family emotions. Set mainly in Mexico, the film features many details typical of Latin American life and culture. Three generations of the Reyes family live crowded in one house but always smile optimistically, encouraging each other to overcome difficulties.

Analyst David A. Gross commented that although the opening revenue of "Blue Beetle" was only one-third of the average of superhero "rookies", experts still gave positive reviews and the film has great prospects in the foreign market.

Meanwhile, Universal's "Oppenheimer" dropped to No. 1 in its fifth weekend in theaters with $10.6 million. The historical drama about the "father of the first atomic bomb" has now surpassed the $700 million mark globally.

Based on the 2005 biography "American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer" by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, "Oppenheimer" is a historical drama set during World War II and tells the story of theoretical physicist Robert Oppenheimer, head of the Los Alamos laboratory.

"Oppenheimer" played a key role in the Manhattan Project, pioneered the development of nuclear weapons, and is considered one of the “fathers of the atomic bomb.”

Fourth place belongs to Paramount's animated film "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem" with 8.4 million USD. The voice cast includes many big names such as star Jackie Chan, actor John Cena, Paul Rudd, famous comedian Maya Rudolph...

Meanwhile, Universal's new talking dog comedy, "Strays," came in fifth with $8.3 million, a worrisome start for a film that cost $46 million to make.

According to VNA