"Straight Outta Compton" rap group bio tops weekend box-office

PanARMENIAN.Net - The biopic about American rap group, "Straight Outta Compton", had more than a strong opening in this weekend's box office. The movie launched to an estimated $56.1 million, beating other newcomers. It also nabbed the best-ever opening for director F. Gary Gray and the best August opening for an R-rated movie as well as the top opening for a musical biopic, AceShowbiz reports.

"All good forms of art do more than just flatter you," said Nick Carpou, Universal's domestic distribution chief. "The more successful they are, the more they make you think about where you are in the world." Carpou also said that the success of the movie was tightly connected to the phenomena of social media. "When you've got the principals behind the film followed by as many people as they are, that's an extra factor," Carpou noted. Ice Cube, for example, has 2.4 million Twitter followers, and he tweeted this morning, "Thank you for making us #1 this weekend."

Centering on the origin story of hip-hop group N.W.A, the movie performed much better than other rap movies like Eminem's "8 Mile", which bowed to $51.2 million in 2002, and "Notorious", the story of Notorious B.I.G., which opened to $20.5 million in 2009. In the past, a deeply rooted belief that films which appeal to African-American audiences won't play overseas has made studios hesitate to greenlight certain projects. "It's been the cross that African-American filmmakers have had to bear for years in terms of getting their stories out," producer Bill Straus said.

Securing the second place was Tom Cruise-starrer "Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation". On its third week, the movie added another $17 million, bringing it domestic total to approximately $138 million.

Another new release at this weekend's box office was "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.", which opened to a disappointing $13.5 million. The movie is considered a flop although it starred some top actors such as Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer.

Rounding out the top five were Josh Trank's "The Fantastic Four" which added another $8 million and "The Gift" that grossed around $6.5 million from 2,503 domestic theaters.