"Smile", a Paramount production signed by director Parker Finn, collected $17.6 million in revenue between Friday and Sunday, according to estimates by Exhibitor Relations.
The film tells the disturbing story of a therapist, played by Sosie Bacon - daughter of actors Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick - who begins to lose touch with reality after witnessing a horrific event involving a patient.
"Enzo the Croco", adapted from a children's book, comes second with 11.5 million dollars for its first weekend.
The crocodile discovered by a little boy in his house in New York sings and enchants his new life in the megalopolis, with Javier Bardem in the skin of his extravagant owner.
"Amsterdam", in which the characters played by Christian Bale, Margot Robbie and John David Washington find themselves embroiled in a political intrigue in 1930s America, reaches the 3rd position with 6.5 million dollars in box office receipts days in dark rooms.
A disappointment, notes analyst David Gross, for a film with a large budget, written and directed by David Russell.
"The Woman King", a historical epic of warriors from the kingdom of Dahomey (West Africa) in the 19th century, with Oscar-winning actress Viola Davis on the bill, slips this weekend to fourth place with 5.3 millions of dollars.
In fifth (3.5 million dollars) comes "Don't Worry Darling", a sort of distressing "Truman Show" planted in a small model town built in the middle of the desert by a mysterious businessman where material well-being is guaranteed but from which it is forbidden to leave.
Olivia Wilde's film, in which her companion Harry Styles appears, was first then second in the previous weeks.
Here's the rest of the top 10:
6 - "Avatar" (rerun, $2.6 million)
7 - "Barbarian" (2.2 million)
8 - "Bros" (2.2 million)
9 - "Terrify 2" ($925,000)
10 - "Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1" ($920,000)
© 2022 AFP