In Battle of the Sequels, 'Thor' Bests 'Holiday' - Wall Street Journal

Nov. 17, 2013 3:32 p.m. ET

NEW YORK—In an unlikely battle of sequels, "Thor: The Dark World" bested "The Best Man Holiday" at the box office.

Walt Disney Inc. DIS -0.03% Walt Disney Co. U.S.: NYSE ^$70.00 -0.02 -0.03% Nov. 15, 2013 4:00 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 6.13M AFTER HOURS ^$70.13 +0.13 +0.19% Nov. 15, 2013 6:06 pm Volume (Delayed 15m): 58,700 P/E Ratio 20.47 Market Cap $125.05 Billion Dividend Yield 1.07% Rev. per Employee $271,331 More quote details and news » 's "Thor: The Dark World" continued its box-office reign with $38.5 million in its second week of release, according to studio estimates Sunday. Opening 14 years after the original, "The Best Man Holiday" opened strongly with $30.6 million.

Drawing an overwhelmingly female and African-American audience, "The Best Man Holiday" was a surprise challenger for the mighty "Thor." The R-rated romantic comedy, with an ensemble cast including Morris Chestnut and Taye Diggs, made its debut with more than three times the box office of 1999's "The Best Man." That film opened with $9 million.

Marvel's Norse superhero, however, has been hammering audiences around the globe. "Thor: The Dark World" made $52.5 million internationally over the weekend, bringing its world-wide total to $479.8 million. With Chris Hemsworth as the title character and Tom Hiddleston as the popular villain Loki, the Thor franchise has proved to be one of Marvel's most successful.

Just as "Thor" approached the half-billion mark, space adventure "Gravity," from Time Warner Inc. TWX -1.11% Time Warner Inc. U.S.: NYSE ^$67.64 -0.76 -1.11% Nov. 15, 2013 4:02 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 4.31M AFTER HOURS ^$67.77 +0.13 +0.19% Nov. 15, 2013 7:50 pm Volume (Delayed 15m): 5,900 P/E Ratio 16.38 Market Cap $61.20 Billion Dividend Yield 1.70% Rev. per Employee $864,529 More quote details and news » 's Warner Bros., crossed it in its seventh week of release.

"The Best Man Holiday," released by Comcast Corp.'s CMCSA +0.08% Comcast Corp. Cl A U.S.: Nasdaq ^$47.73 +0.04 +0.08% Nov. 15, 2013 4:00 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 9.69M AFTER HOURS ^$47.78 +0.05 +0.10% Nov. 15, 2013 5:51 pm Volume (Delayed 15m): 326,897 P/E Ratio 18.87 Market Cap $124.33 Billion Dividend Yield 1.63% Rev. per Employee $493,550 More quote details and news » Universal Pictures, was the only new wide-release opening over the weekend, as the marketplace clears out for the release of "Hunger Games: Catching Fire." In limited release, Alexander Payne's black-and-white Midwest road trip "Nebraska" opened in four locations with a strong $35,000 per theater average for Viacom Inc. VIAB -0.36% Viacom Inc. Cl B U.S.: Nasdaq ^$80.51 -0.29 -0.36% Nov. 15, 2013 4:00 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 4.95M AFTER HOURS ^$80.18 -0.33 -0.41% Nov. 15, 2013 4:42 pm Volume (Delayed 15m): 72,791 P/E Ratio 16.23 Market Cap $35.90 Billion Dividend Yield 1.49% Rev. per Employee $1,396,150 More quote details and news » 's Paramount Pictures.

Martin Scorsese's "The Wolf of Wall Street" was originally slated to open, but was postponed to Dec. 25 by Paramount.

Expected to be one of the year's biggest debuts, Lionsgate's "Catching Fire" could abruptly close the box-office window for "Thor" next weekend. "Catching Fire" opened in Brazil over the weekend, earning $6.3 million.