FIERCE

‘The Meg’ Stuns With $44.5 Million Debut

Jason Statham and a giant prehistoric shark have given Warner Bros. its biggest domestic opening of the year.

Live-action shark movie The Meg defied all expectations to claim the top spot in theaters this weekend with a $44.5 million debut, the biggest domestic opening this year for Warner Bros. Starring Jason Statham as a shark hunter engaged in battle with a prehistoric, 70-foot beast, the film clinched a $96.8 million overseas debut. Li Bingbing, Rainn Wilson, Ruby Rose, Winston Chao and Cliff Curtis also star in the big-budget action film. Two holdovers claimed second and third place in theaters this weekend. Tom Cruise trailed behind Statham in Mission: Impossible—Fallout, which earned $20 million this weekend. Disney’s Christopher Robin pulled in $12.4 million in its second weekend to come in third. Spike Lee’s highly anticipated BlacKkKlansmen failed to break in to the top three but scored a solid fifth-place debut with $10.8 million.