‘Kingsman' dethrones 'It' as box office royalty

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Spy comedy “Kingsman: The Golden Circle” dethroned horror phenomenon “It” and became this weekend’s box officer ruler with an estimated 40 million US dollars.

Stephen King's “It” still managed to scare up 30 million US dollars, while the animated comedy “The Lego Ninjago” movie came in third with 21 million US dollars. These numbers are a positive addition following the lackluster summer earnings.

“Kingsman: The Golden Circle” is a sequel that reteams director Vaughn with actors Colin Firth and Taron Egerton. A number of other stars are in the spy comedy including - Channing Tatum, Halle Berry, Pedro Pascal and Jeff Bridges. The story follows the Kingsmen as survivors of a secret British spy agency teaming up with their American counterparts after a drug cartel threatens the world.

“It” is showing plenty of staying power in its third weekend after dominating the domestic box office. “It” has already become the highest-grossing horror movie of all time, eclipsing the 233 million US dollar domestic total for “The Exorcist.” The worldwide total gross for “It” is more than 417 million US dollars.

Warner Bros. Animation's “Ninjago,” a spinoff of “The Lego Movie.” The first family film of fall is based on the toy line of the same name. This films open was not as big as previous Lego films. “The Lego Batman Movie,” which debuted to 53 million US dollars earlier this year, or “The Lego Movie,” which opened in 2014 to an even bigger 69.1 million US dollars.

The comedy-drama “Battle of the Sexes,” is a potential awards contender that launched this weekend to a strong limited release with an estimated 460 thousand US dollars at 21 theaters. The film stars Emma Stone and Steve Carell in the story of the 1973 tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs.

Independent horror movie “Friend Request” is showing little traction with opening a weekend of less than less than 3 million US dollars. Same can be said for Jake Gyllenhaal’s “Stronger,” a biopic about Boston Marathon bombing survivor Jeff Bauman. It opened with a moderate 1.6 million US dollars in limited release.