‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Opens with $50 Mln at Domestic Box Offices

"Spider-man: No Way Home" took in $50 million at US and Canadian movie box offices on Thursday. (AP)
"Spider-man: No Way Home" took in $50 million at US and Canadian movie box offices on Thursday. (AP)
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‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Opens with $50 Mln at Domestic Box Offices

"Spider-man: No Way Home" took in $50 million at US and Canadian movie box offices on Thursday. (AP)
"Spider-man: No Way Home" took in $50 million at US and Canadian movie box offices on Thursday. (AP)

"Spider-man: No Way Home" took in $50 million at US and Canadian movie box offices on Thursday, the third-highest total for preview showings ahead of its opening weekend, distributor Sony Corp said on Friday.

The big-budget action movie co-produced by Walt Disney Co stars Tom Holland as the web-slinging superhero and Zendaya as his girlfriend, MJ. It is playing exclusively in theaters.

Thursday's ticket sales set a record for the COVID-19 pandemic and provided welcome news for theater chains, including AMC Entertainment, Cinemark and Cineworld's Regal chain. Movie houses have been struggling to lure back audiences during the global health crisis.

"No Way Home" received a glowing reception from movie critics. As of Friday, 95% of 220 reviews were scored as positive on the Rotten Tomatoes website.



Slovakia Festival Hosting Kanye West Cancelled after 'Heil Hitler' Furore

Kanye West's song 'Heil Hitler' ends with a speech by the Nazi leader. KEVORK DJANSEZIAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
Kanye West's song 'Heil Hitler' ends with a speech by the Nazi leader. KEVORK DJANSEZIAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
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Slovakia Festival Hosting Kanye West Cancelled after 'Heil Hitler' Furore

Kanye West's song 'Heil Hitler' ends with a speech by the Nazi leader. KEVORK DJANSEZIAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
Kanye West's song 'Heil Hitler' ends with a speech by the Nazi leader. KEVORK DJANSEZIAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP

The Slovakia festival due to welcome Kanye West next week has called off the event following the uproar over the US rapper's May release of a song glorifying Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.

Before the July 20 gig was cancelled, Bratislava's Rubicon hip hop festival was set to be West's only confirmed live performance in Europe this year.

Though he has won 24 Grammy Awards over the course of his career, the erratic rapper has become notorious in recent years for his increasingly antisemitic and hate-filled rants.

West, who has legally changed his name to the shorthand "Ye", released the song "Heil Hitler" on May 8, the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.

In the wake of the announcement of West's appearance at Rubicon, thousands of people signed a petition against the gig.

The rapper -- a vocal supporter of US President Donald Trump -- is "repeatedly and openly adhering to symbols and ideology connected with the darkest period of modern global history", two groups behind the petition said.

In a statement on Instagram late on Wednesday, the festival's organizers said the decision to cancel the event was "due to media pressure and the withdrawal of several artists and partners".

"This was not an easy decision," the organizers said, without drawing a direct line between the rapper's planned appearance and the cancellations.

Contacted on Thursday by AFP, the Rubicon festival did not offer further explanations.

Styling itself as the central European country's premier hip hop hang-out, the Rubicon festival was set to run from July 18 to 20.

US rappers Offset and Sheck Wes were set to share top billing with West.

Australia cancelled West's visa on July 2 over "Heil Hitler", in which West raps about his custody battle with ex-wife Kim Kardashian before the song ends with an extract of a speech by the Nazi dictator.

West's wife, Bianca Censori, is Australian.