The Divergent Series: "Insurgent" movie (Photo : Reuters)
The "Divergent" series film "Insurgent" has taken the top spot in the weekend box office, earning an impressive $54 million domestically in North America, and more than $100 million internationally . Meanwhile, Sean Penn's movie "The Gunman" finished fourth at the domestic box office, barely ahead of Lian Neeson's "Run All Night."
"Insurgent" is based on the young-adult novel "Divergent" series written by Veronica Roth, according to Time. The 2012 novel centers on a post-apocalyptic version of Chicago.
This second installment includes the same actors and actresses as "Divergent" (2014), including Theo James, Shailene Woodley, Kate Winslet, and Miles Teller. However, the director Robert Schwentke replaced the first film's director, Neil Burger.
Ticket sales of "Insurgent" might have benefited from its being released in large format theaters and also in 3D. However, its premiere earnings were still a little lower than the premiere of "Divergent," according to The Celebrity Cafe.
Although the box office results of the two of four films in the "Divergent" series were impressive they raise some issues, according to Time. Although the $120 million budget of "Insurgent" was $35 million higher than "Divergent," it earned $600,000 less in its premiere weekend.
One hope of Lionsgate was that Woodley, also a star in "The Fault in Our Stars" would create a bigger draw. Also, the sequels of "Twilight" and "The Hunger Games" both earned more than their predecessors during their opening weekends.
"The Gunman," directed by Penn, earned just $5 million domestically. Only 14 percent of professional film critics included in Rotten Tomatoes' aggregate have given it positive reviews.
