‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’ Scares Off 'Transformers' for 3rd Week as Box Office No. 1

Michael DeLuca, from top left, Catherine O'Hara, Monica Bellucci, Tim Burton, Michael Keaton, Jenna Ortega, Winona Ryder, Arthur Conti, Amy Nuttall, Burn Gorman, Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Tommy Harper, from bottom left, Justin Theroux, Pamela Abdy, and Willem Dafoe arrive at the premiere of "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Michael DeLuca, from top left, Catherine O'Hara, Monica Bellucci, Tim Burton, Michael Keaton, Jenna Ortega, Winona Ryder, Arthur Conti, Amy Nuttall, Burn Gorman, Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Tommy Harper, from bottom left, Justin Theroux, Pamela Abdy, and Willem Dafoe arrive at the premiere of "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP)
TT

‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’ Scares Off 'Transformers' for 3rd Week as Box Office No. 1

Michael DeLuca, from top left, Catherine O'Hara, Monica Bellucci, Tim Burton, Michael Keaton, Jenna Ortega, Winona Ryder, Arthur Conti, Amy Nuttall, Burn Gorman, Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Tommy Harper, from bottom left, Justin Theroux, Pamela Abdy, and Willem Dafoe arrive at the premiere of "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Michael DeLuca, from top left, Catherine O'Hara, Monica Bellucci, Tim Burton, Michael Keaton, Jenna Ortega, Winona Ryder, Arthur Conti, Amy Nuttall, Burn Gorman, Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Tommy Harper, from bottom left, Justin Theroux, Pamela Abdy, and Willem Dafoe arrive at the premiere of "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024, in London. (Photo by Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP)

It’s a three-peat for “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.”
The Tim Burton legacy sequel to his 1988 horror comedy topped the North American box office charts for the third straight weekend with $26 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.
It edged out the animated new release “Transformers: One,” which brought in $25 million. The Optimus Prime origin story from Paramount Pictures features the voices of Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry and Scarlett Johansson.
“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” a Warner Bros. release with Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder returning as stars, has earned more than $226 million domestically in its three weeks after a monster opening of $110 million — the third best of the year — and a second weekend of $51.6 million, The Associated Press reported.
Third place went to the James McAvoy horror “Speak No Evil,” which came in at $5.9 million in its second week for a total of $21.5 million.
On the whole, the box office was in a quiet phase that is expected to break when “Joker: Folie à Deux” dances its way onto the big screen on Oct. 4.
The year’s second-highest grosser “Deadpool & Wolverine” remained in the top 5 in its ninth weekend with another $3.9 million and a domestic total of $627 million. Only Pixar's “Inside Out 2” has earned more.
The Demi Moore-starring, Coralie Fargeat-directed body horror “The Substance," which made a splash at the Cannes Film Festival, brought in $3.1 million on limited screens in its first weekend for the sixth spot.
The Daily Wire movie “Am I Racist?” — in which conservative columnist Matt Walsh goes undercover as a “DEI trainee” — stayed in the top 10 after a fourth place finish last week, earning $2.9 million for seventh place and a two-week total of $9 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at US and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.



Oscar Voters Required to View All Films Before Casting Ballots 

Oscar statuettes appear backstage at the Oscars in Los Angeles on Feb. 26, 2017. (AP)
Oscar statuettes appear backstage at the Oscars in Los Angeles on Feb. 26, 2017. (AP)
TT

Oscar Voters Required to View All Films Before Casting Ballots 

Oscar statuettes appear backstage at the Oscars in Los Angeles on Feb. 26, 2017. (AP)
Oscar statuettes appear backstage at the Oscars in Los Angeles on Feb. 26, 2017. (AP)

Oscar voters will be required to demonstrate that they have watched all the films in each category before they cast their final ballots, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Monday.

The new rule, which addresses a longstanding concern that voters are skipping some films, will apply for the next Oscars ceremony in March 2026, the Academy said in a statement.

The Academy previously operated under an honor system that voters would see every Oscar-nominated film before casting their ballots.

However, with the number of nominees growing in recent years, some voters have admitted not fully fulfilling that duty.

Under the new system, Academy members will be tracked on the organization's voters-only streaming platform to make sure they have watched each film.

For movies seen elsewhere, such as in cinemas or at festival screenings, voters will be required to "fill out a form" vouching for when and where it was watched, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

For the Best Picture category alone, which has 10 nominated films, competing studios traditionally host glitzy events to woo voters during their awards campaigns, with parties, screenings and festival showings, sometimes followed by Q&A sessions with the stars and filmmakers.

The Academy also weighed in on a controversy that arose during the last voting season, which was marred by questions about the use of artificial intelligence in movies, such as "The Brutalist" and "Emilia Perez."

In guidance issued Monday, the Academy said AI and other digital tools will "neither help nor harm the chances of achieving a nomination."

The new rule clarifies that the use of technology is not disqualifying.

"The Academy and each branch will judge the achievement, taking into account the degree to which a human was at the heart of the creative authorship when choosing which movie to award."