‘The Fate of the Furious’ races ahead of the pack

Even after seven movies, Universal’s latest instalment of the car-centric action franchise The Fast and the Furious found plenty in the tank to top the box office charts Friday.

Again featuring Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson amid various chase scenes and explosions, The Fate of the Furious racked up more than $45 million (Dh165.23 million) on its opening night, according to estimates. By the time the film ends its run, some analysts have projected it could earn more than $400 million worldwide thanks to an ambitious international release plan.

This weekend, it could take in between $110 million and $125 million, which would make it the second-strongest opening of the year behind Disney’s live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast. That film added an estimated $5 million to its total Friday, enough to place it in third heading into the weekend.

In a distant second, The Boss Baby earned an estimated $6.5 million entering its third weekend of release. The film released by 20th Century Fox has brought in over $100 million.

In fourth place, another animated feature, Smurfs: The Lost Village, earned $2.7 million, and the Zach Braff-directed comedy Going in Style rounded out the top five Friday with $2.5 million.