'Joker' holds on to top spot for second week

The first weekend was no fluke: "Joker" is a hit. The R-rated comic book villain origin story had a phenomenal second weekend at the box office, topping the charts once more over newcomers such as the animated "The Addams Family" and the Will Smith action pic "Gemini Man."

Warner Bros. said Sunday that "Joker" added an estimated $55 million from North American theaters this weekend, bringing its domestic total to $192.7 million.

Not only are the pure grosses impressive, but "Joker" also dropped only 43% from its record-breaking debut.

Internationally, "Joker" added $123.7 million from 79 markets, bringing its global total to $543.9 million after just 12 days in theaters.

"Joker's" second weekend success played well alongside the counterprogramming of the kid-friendly "Addams Family," which exceeded expectations and came in a strong second with $30.3 million.

It features the voices of Oscar Isaac, Charlize Theron and Bette Midler. "The Addams Family" defied middling reviews (43% on Rotten Tomatoes) and benefited from relatively few family friendly options in theaters right now, aside from "Abominable" which is now in its third weekend.

The ambitious, star-driven "Gemini Man" was not so fortunate. The visual effects-heavy Ang Lee film about an assassin on the run from a younger version of himself (both played by Smith using state of the art de-aging technology) opened to poor reviews in third place with only $20.5 million.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters:

1. "Joker," $55 million.

2. "The Addams Family," $30.3 million.

3. "Gemini Man," $20.5 million.

4. "Abominable," $6.2 million.

5. "Downton Abbey," $4.9 million.

6. "Hustlers," $3.9 million.

7. "Judy," $3.3 million.

8. "It: Chapter Two," $3.2 million.

9. "Jexi," $3.1 million.

10. "Ad Astra," $1.9 million.

Associated Press