Kung Fu Panda 4 has stayed at the top of the box office charts for the second weekend in a row. The fourth installment to Jack Black’s comedy cartoon franchise has beat out Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two. 

In its second weekend, Kung Fu Panda grossed $30 million domestically while showing in 4,067 theater across North America. Although, Kung Fu Panda has held a steady lead at the box office two weekends in a row, the whole marketplace is lower than previous years, as movie theaters are still experiencing the effects of the pandemic and strike. Since its first movie back in 2008, Kung Fu Panda has grossed more than $1.9 billion in total including the four movies, animated series spin offs, and video games. In the two weekends in the theater, the movie has grossed a total of $108 million in ticket sales in North America.

In a close second behind Kung Fu Panda is Dune: Part Two. In its third weekend in theaters, the movie has grossed $29.1 million in ticket sales. The ticket sales are down 37% from last weekend, despite that the second installment of the film has already done better in he box office world wide. Dune made $435 million worldwide during its run in theaters, while Dune: Part Two has grossed $500 million worldwide.

In the third place, is Simon Cellan Jones’ Arthur The King. This is the opening weekend for the film, and it has grossed $7.5 million domestically. The film had a relatively low budget to produce at $20 million, so the film is expected to make back the cost of production, and a profit. The film follows Michael Light, who competes in the 435- mile race through the Dominican Republic, and along the way, he meets a stray, wounded canine Arthur, who accompanies Light on the journey. The film stars Mark Wahlberg, Simu Liu, and Juliet Rylance. The movie scored am ‘A’ rating on CinemaScore, but according to a Deadline article, the movie underperformed at box offices perhaps in part because Wahlberg’s last movie The Family Plan, was released on streaming services, rather than theaters. Denzel Washington talked about the phenomenon of releasing films on streaming, rather than theaters. Washington said Sidney Poitier gave him the advice, “if they see you for free all week, they won’t pay to see you on the weekend.”

In spot number 6, in its opening weekend as well, was Rose Glass’ Love Lies Bleeding starring Kristen Stewart and Katy M. O’Brian. Th film opened in 1,362 theaters in the United States grossing $2.5 million.

Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore said of the slow box office, “When there’s not a newcomer dominating the marketplace, it makes for a rather slow weekend. Now we’re just waiting for Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire and Godzilla x The New Empire. That combo should take us out of the month of March on a high note.”

But, Dergarabedian has hope for the coming months for theaters saying, “We’re going to have to have a lot of patience until we get to May and The Fall Guy and the summer movie season. But there’s some great movies on the way.”

Box Office Weekend List 

1. Kung Fu Panda 4, $30 million ($108M total)

2. Dune: Part Two, $29.1 million ($205M total)

3. Arthur the King, $7.5 million. ($7.5M total)

4. Imaginary, $5.6 million. ($19M total)

5. Cabrini, $2.8 million. ($13M total)

6. Love Lies Bleeding, $2.5 million. ($2.8M total)

7. Bob Marley: One Love, $2.3 million. ($93M total)

8. One Life, $1.7 million ($1.7M total)

9. The American Society of Magical Negroes, $1.3 million ($1.3M total)

10. Ordinary Angels, $1 million. ($18M total)