��ɫtv

But the weekend was never going to be a blockbuster one, anyway. “Mercy,” a $60 million thriller starring Chris Pratt as a man in a near-future standing trial before an AI judge, was the top new release. It arrived with withering reviews (20% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and an equally poor reception (a “B-” CinemaScore) from audiences.

That was still enough to finally dislodge James Cameron's third Pandora epic from atop the box office. “Avatar: Fire and Ash” slid to second place with $7 million. While The Walt Disney Co. release is starting to peter out domestically, it remains a top draw overseas. It took in $28.1 million internationally in its sixth weekend.

“Avatar: Fire and Ash” isn't going to come close to the box-office heights of the previous two “Avatar” movies. The 2009 original grossed $2.9 billion and the 2022 sequel, tapped out at $2.3 billion. “Fire and Ash” has now cleared $1 billion internationally, but its domestic haul ($378.5 million) is well off the pace of the other two films.

The “Oscar bump” that films once saw following nomination is largely a thing of the past. The lead movies in — “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another” — long ago completed their theatrical runs. But a handful of nominees saw strong business.

nominated for eight Oscars including best picture, collected $2 million in its first weekend of wide release. The Shakespeare drama, starring Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal, has been in theaters for two months, steadily increasing its theatrical footprint. It's up to $17.6 million domestically and $42.1 million worldwide.

Josh Safdie's nominated for nine Oscars, earned $3.5 million in its sixth weekend of release. The A24 title, , this week cross $100 million globally. It's made $86.2 million domestically thus far.

But newer releases struggled. “Return to Silent Hill,” the third installment in a horror series kick-started with 2006's “Silent Hill,” opened with $3.2 million. Though Sony released the 2006 film and Open Road distributed the 2012 follow up, the low-budget “Return to Silent Hill” was put out by Iconic Events.

In its second week of release, dropped swiftly. The Sony release, directed by Nia DaCosta, opened last week to a disappointing $13.3 million in sales despite good reviews. But its second weekend was even worse, dropping 71% with $3.6 million.

Other new releases flopped. Roadside Attractions' “H Is For Hawk,” starring Claire Foy, took in just $150,000 from 472 theaters. Sony's “Clika,” about a migrant worker with music aspirations, managed only $1.2 million in 522 locations.

Top 10 movies by domestic box office

With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and ��ɫtv theaters, according to Comscore:

1. “Mercy,” $11.2 million.

2. “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” $7 million.

3. “Zootopia 2,” $5.7 million.

4. “The Housemaid,” $4.2 million.

5. “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple,” $3.6 million.

6. “Marty Supreme,” $3.5 million.

7. “Return to Silent Hill,” $2.7 million.

8. “Hamnet,” $2 million.

9. “Lord of the Rings,” $2 million.

10. “Primate,” $1.7 million.