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‘The Woman King’ Takes North American Box Office Throne

Viola Davis attends the world premiere of "The Woman King" at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada September 9, 2022. (Reuters)
Viola Davis attends the world premiere of "The Woman King" at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada September 9, 2022. (Reuters)
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‘The Woman King’ Takes North American Box Office Throne

Viola Davis attends the world premiere of "The Woman King" at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada September 9, 2022. (Reuters)
Viola Davis attends the world premiere of "The Woman King" at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada September 9, 2022. (Reuters)

The Viola Davis-led action epic “The Woman King” easily conquered the North American box office in its first weekend in theaters, against a crowded market of new releases. The film, directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, surpassed expectations and earned $19 million in ticket sales, according to estimates from Sony on Sunday.

“The Woman King” was released by Sony and TriStar in 3,765 locations and carries a reported production budget of $50 million, which was co-financed by eOne. The film, about the Agojie, the all-female army of the Kingdom of Dahomey in West Africa in the 1800s, got glowing reviews after its debut at the Toronto Film Festival. It currently boasts a 94% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. And theatrical audiences seem just as enthusiastic, giving it a rare A+ CinemaScore suggesting that word of mouth will be strong in the coming weeks.

“This one has great reviews, an epic story and a great star in the lead role,” said Paul Dergarabedian, Comscore’s senior media analyst. “People want to go to the movie theater and audiences are back in the habit of expecting new movies in theaters.”

The horror movie “Barbarian,” a 20th Century Studios release, took second place in its second weekend with $6.3 million.

It was a jam-packed week for new releases at the domestic box office that included the A24 horror prequel “Pearl,” Searchlight’s starry mystery pic “See How They Run,” NEON’s David Bowie documentary “Moonage Daydream,” Paramount and Miramax’s “Confess, Fletch,” with Jon Hamm, and Focus Features’ “The Silent Twins.” But even though most boasted good reviews, it was still a slower week for the business overall.

“See How They Run,” a 1950s-set murder mystery with Saoirse Ronan and Sam Rockwell, is estimating a $3.1 million domestic debut from 2,404 locations.

Ti West’s “Pearl” also took in estimated $3.1 million. A24 released the film starring Mia Goth as a farmgirl who dreams of movie stardom on 2,935 screens. The first film “X” opened $4.3 million in March and the studio has already greenlit a third film, “MaXXXine.”

Brett Morgen’s Bowie documentary “Moonage Daydream,” meanwhile, debuted exclusively on IMAX screens this weekend, where it made $1.2 million in North America and landed in 10th place.

“This may not be a blockbuster-filled corridor, but this is a great weekend,” said Dergarabedian. “There’s all this talk of the post summer doldrums or slowdown, but there’s a lot of new movies out there. You just have to look for the gems.”

Next week will see the release of Olivia Wilde’s much-discussed “Don’t Worry Darling,” which could give a boost to the box office. But blockbuster numbers likely won’t return until October and even November when the superhero movies return with “Black Adam” and “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.”

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Eminem, Alanis Morissette, Sheryl Crow, N.W.A. and Janet Jackson Get Songwriters Hall of Fame Nods

Eminem performs during "Live From Detroit: The Concert at Michigan Central," on June 6, 2024, in Detroit. (AP)
Eminem performs during "Live From Detroit: The Concert at Michigan Central," on June 6, 2024, in Detroit. (AP)
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Eminem, Alanis Morissette, Sheryl Crow, N.W.A. and Janet Jackson Get Songwriters Hall of Fame Nods

Eminem performs during "Live From Detroit: The Concert at Michigan Central," on June 6, 2024, in Detroit. (AP)
Eminem performs during "Live From Detroit: The Concert at Michigan Central," on June 6, 2024, in Detroit. (AP)

Eminem, Boy George, George Clinton, Sheryl Crow, Janet Jackson, the Doobie Brothers, N.W.A. and Alanis Morissette are among the nominees for the 2025 class at the Songwriters Hall of Fame, an eclectic group of rap, rock, hip-hop and pop pioneers.

Joining them on the ballot are Bryan Adams, with radio staples like “Summer of ’69” and “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?,” and Mike Love of the Beach Boys, hoping to get in 25 years after band founder Brian Wilson. David Gates, co-lead singer of the pop-music group Bread, is also looking for entry.

The Hall annually inducts performers and non-performers alike, and the latter category this year includes Walter Afanasieff, who helped Mariah Carey with her smash “All I Want for Christmas Is You;” Mike Chapman, who co-wrote Pat Benatar’s “Love Is a Battlefield;” and Narada Michael Walden, the architect of Whitney Houston's “How Will I Know″ and Aretha Franklin's "Freeway of Love.”

Eligible voting members have until Dec. 22 to turn in ballots with their choices of three nominees from the songwriter category and three from the performing-songwriter category. The Associated Press got an early copy of the list.

Several performers are getting another shot at entry, including Clinton, whose Parliament-Funkadelic collective was hugely influential with hits like “Atomic Dog” and “Give Up the Funk,” and The Doobie Brothers — Tom Johnston, Patrick Simmons and Michael McDonald — with such classics as “Listen to the Music” and "Long Train Runnin.’” Steve Winwood, whose hits include “Higher Love” and “Roll With It,” has also been on the ballot before.

Hip-hop this year is represented by Eminem — whose hits include “Lose Yourself" and “Stan” — and N.W.A. members Dr. Dre, Eazy E, Ice Cube, MC Ren and DJ Yella. Already in the Hall are hip-hop stars like Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg and Missy Elliot. Tommy James, with hits including ”Mony Mony,″ ”Crimson and Clover″ and ”I Think We’re Alone Now,″ has also earned a nod.

If Jackson, whose 1989 album “Rhythm Nation” was a landmark, gets into the Hall, it will be more than two decades after her late brother Michael. The Canadian songwriter Morissette, whose influential “Jagged Little Pill” has won Grammys, Tonys, Junos and MTV awards would also add to the Hall's rocking women. (Glen Ballard, who helped produce and write the album, is already in.)

As would Crow, the “All I Wanna Do” and “Everyday Is a Winding Road” singer-songwriter, is having a critical resurgence after being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2023. Boy George lifts the flag for '80s New Wave with the Culture Club hits “Karma Chameleon” and “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me.”

Other nominees for the non-performing category include Franne Golde, who co-wrote Selena’s ”Dreaming of You;″ Tom Douglas, who wrote country hits for Tim McGraw, Lady Antebellum and Miranda Lambert; Ashley Gorley, fresh off his co-writing smash “I Had Some Help” by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen; and Roger Nichols, who co-wrote The Carpenters’ ″We’ve Only Just Begun.″

They join Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, who contributed to the hit ″The Boy Is Mine″ by Brandy and Monica; Sonny Curtis, former member of the Crickets who wrote and performed the theme song for “The Mary Tyler Moore Show," ”Love is All Around,” and British composer Tony Macaulay, who wrote “Build Me Up Buttercup.”

The Hall also put forward three songwriting teams: Steve Barri and P.F. Sloan, who wrote “Secret Agent Man;” and Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter, who penned the Four Tops hit “Ain’t No Woman (Like the One I’ve Got);” and Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham, who wrote the Percy Sledge tune “Out of Left Field.”

The Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 1969 to honor those creating popular music. A songwriter with a notable catalog of songs qualifies for induction 20 years after the first commercial release of a song.

Some already in the hall include Carole King, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora, Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Brian Wilson, James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Lionel Richie, Bill Withers, Neil Diamond and Phil Collins. Last year saw R.E.M., Steely Dan, Dean Pitchford, Hillary Lindsey and Timbaland inducted.