US box office has the worst weekend in 16 years

The US box office took a hammering over the weekend, recording its lowest takings since 2001.

Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson assassin comedy ‘The Hitman’s Bodyguard’ topped the chart for a second week, but with a historically low $10 million (£7.7 million) in ticket sales.

It was followed by the latest ‘Conjuring’ series spin-off, ‘Annabelle: Creation’, which made a woeful $7.4 million (£5.7 million) over the weekend.

‘Leap!’, a new animation from The Weinstein Company which features Elle Fanning and pop star Carly Rae Jepson, also flopped horribly, making just $5 million, following a critical drubbing.

In all, the US box office brought in just $65 million (£50 million) in all – the lowest figure since September of 2001.

The figure is down 35% from August last year’s figures too.

It’s yet another bad result in one of America’s most poorly attended summers in years, and has been put down to a number of factors.

A lack of new releases this weekend is one, while the Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor fight is also said to have had an adverse effect.

It’s thought that next weekend – which is the Labor Day holiday in the US – could be just as bad.

However, it should stand the new version of Stephen King’s ‘It’ in excellent stead – some critics are calling it the best adaptation of his books ever, and it’s hoped it will drag the crowds back to the multiplexes to see it.

It’s due out on September 8.

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