“Don't Breathe” scares “Suicide Squad” away from top box office spot

PanARMENIAN.Net - Screen Gems' horror film "Don't Breathe" successfully debuts in the first place at North American box office. The micro-budgeted horror flick bags more than double its $10 million production budget with $26.4 million in its first week, AceShowbiz said.

"As it turns out, horror is the least scary genre this summer, especially to the bean counters in Hollywood," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for box office tracker comScore. "(They) can almost always be counted on to make money." He added that horror films perform very well on home video too.

Falling to No. 2 is Warner Bros.' "Suicide Squad". After staying atop the domestic box office for three weeks in a row, the DC antihero movie drops 41.3% in its fourth week, adding another $12.2 million to its total cume of $283 million domestically.

"Kubo and the Two Strings" moves up one slot to the third place in its second week. The stop-motion film bags $7.8 million. Meanwhile, last week's runner-up "Sausage Party" drops two slots to the fourth place in its third week. The animated comedy collects another $7.5 million to its total of $80 million domestically.

Rounding out the top five is another newcomer "Mechanic: Resurrection" which earns $7.5 million. The Jason Statham-starring film is unable to match the success of its predecessor as "The Mechanic" debuted with $11.4 million in 2011.