‘Despicable Me 4’ reigns at box office, while ‘Longlegs’ gets impressive start

Gru and the minions celebrated a second week in first place at the North American box office this weekend, while a small horror movie called “Longlegs” upset the starry $100 million "Fly Me to the Moon."

The supremacy of “ Despicable Me 4 ” was hardly a surprise, as the Universal and Illumination franchise added $44.7 million and pushed the film over $200 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. But the big upset came further down the charts with “ Longlegs ” more than doubling the debut of the Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum romantic comedy “ Fly Me to the Moon.”

“Longlegs,” an original horror about a serial killer starring Maika Monroe and Nicolas Cage, made an estimated $22.6 million from 2,510 theaters. That’s the best ever start for indie outfit Neon (most famous for releasing the Oscar-winning “Parasite”), which acquired the $10 million film for distribution. Written and directed by Osgood Perkins, “Longlegs” also scored the best opening for an R-rated film this year.

On the opposite end of the spectrum was “Fly Me to the Moon,” an Apple Original Films production which launched with only $10 million. It trailed holdovers “Inside Out 2,” in third with $20.8 million; and “A Quiet Place: Day One,” in fourth place with $11.8 million.

Sony distributed “Fly Me to the Moon,” the Greg Berlanti-directed film about a marketing executive brought in to sell the space race to the American public, and, later, stage a fake moon landing just in case. It opened in 3,356 locations this weekend, attracting an audience that was mostly over 45.

In limited release, A24 opened “ Sing Sing,” an early Oscar contender, in four theaters in New York and Los Angeles. With sellouts in both locations, it made $137,119, one of the best limited openings of the year. The film from director Greg Kwedar is about an arts program at the prison and features many real life participants, including Clarence Maclin in his film debut. “Sing Sing” will continue playing on four screens through July and expand nationwide in August.

Finally, “Twisters,” which opens in North America on Thursday, began its international rollout this weekend, earning $11.5 million from 38 markets including in Australia, Mexico and Brazil.

Estimated ticket sales are for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. “Despicable Me 4,” $44.7 million.

2. “Longlegs,” $22.6 million.

3. “Inside Out 2,” $20.8 million.

4. “A Quiet Place: Day One,” $11.8 million.

5. “Fly Me to the Moon,” $10 million.

6. “Bad Boys: Ride or Die,” $4.4 million.

7. “Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1,” $2.4 million.

8. “MaXXXine,” $2.1 million.

9. “Indian 2,” $2 million.

10. “Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot,” $1.3 million.

This image released by Apple TV+ shows Scarlett Johansson in a scene from "Fly Me to the Moon. (Dan McFadden/Apple TV+ via AP)

This image released by Apple TV+ shows Scarlett Johansson, center, an Channing Tatum, right, in a scene from "Fly Me to the Moon. (Dan McFadden/Apple TV+ via AP)

Nicolas Cage, left, and Maika Monroe arrive at the Los Angeles Premiere 2of "Longlegs" at the Egyptian Theatre on Monday July 8, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Riko Cage, from left, Nicolas Cage and Maika Monroe arrive at the premiere of "Longlegs" at the Egyptian Theatre on Monday July 8, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Nicolas Cage arrives at the premiere of "Longlegs" at the Egyptian Theatre on Monday, July 8, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

This image released by Neon shows Maika Monroe in a scene from "Longlegs." (Neon via AP)

This image released by Neon shows Maika Monroe in a scene from "Longlegs." (Neon via AP)

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A statue depicting Johnny Cash departed Arkansas for Washington on Thursday, as state officials gave the bronze figure a send-off toward its new home at the U.S. Capitol.

A small crowd that included members of Cash's family gathered outside Arkansas' Capitol to watch as the statue — safely enclosed in a wooden crate in the back of a tractor trailer — began its journey. The eight- foot-tall statue is scheduled to be unveiled at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 24.

“Today is the day we're going to send Johnny to D.C.,” Shane Broadway, chairman of the Arkansas National Statuary Hall Steering Committee, said.

The Cash statue is the second new one Arkansas has sent to replace two existing ones representing the state at the U.S. Capitol. Another statue depicting civil rights leader Daisy Bates was unveiled at the Capitol earlier this year. Bates mentored the nine Black children who desegregated Little Rock Central High School in 1957.

The two statues replace ones from Arkansas that had been at the Capitol for more than 100 years. The Legislature in 2019 voted to replace the two statues, which depicted little-known figures from the 18th and 19th centuries with Bates and Cash.

Cash was born in Kingsland, a tiny town about 60 miles (100 kilometers) south of Little Rock. He died in 2003 at age 71. His achievements include 90 million records sold worldwide spanning country, rock, blues, folk and gospel. He was among the few artists inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

“I think a trip to DC, it is worth you going just to see these two monuments,” Secretary of State John Thurston said.

The Cash statue depicts the singer with a guitar slung across his back and a Bible in his hand. Little Rock sculptor Kevin Kresse, who was selected to create the statue, has sculpted other musical figures from Arkansas such as Al Green, Glen Campbell and Levon Helm.

Wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the singer's last name, Kresse said he was looking forward to the moment once the statue is installed and unveiled to the public.

“The pressure inside my bottle has reduced and when he's inside the Capitol safely put together then I can fully take a deep breath,” Kresse told reporters.

A model of the statue of Johnny Cash that will be installed in the U.S. Capitol sits in Kevin Kresse's studio in Little Rock, Ark., on April 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew DeMillo)

A crate holding a statue of Johnny Cash, destined for the U.S. Capitol, sits in the back of a tractor trailer parked outside the Arkansas Capitol in Little Rock, Ark., Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew DeMillo)

Artist Kevin Kresse, who sculpted a statue of Johnny Cash destined for the U.S. Capitol, speaks in front of a tractor trailer parked outside the Arkansas Capitol in Little Rock, Ark., Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew DeMillo)

A crowd gathers to watch a tractor trailer holding a statue of Johnny Cash, depart from the Arkansas Capitol in Little Rock, Ark., Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew DeMillo)

Artist Kevin Kresse, who sculpted a statue of Johnny Cash destined for the U.S. Capitol, laughs with Shimpfort Hardney, who will be driving the sculpture to Washington, outside the Arkansas Capitol in Little Rock, Ark., Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew DeMillo)