Hop tops despite drop

Writer: Anne Jamaludin

Russell Brand voices Easter bunny E.B, an aspiring drummer in "Hop"

12 Apr – James Marsden and Russell Brand's power collaboration in live-action animation "Hop" maintained the movie's number one spot at the North American box office with Saoirse Ronan's action adventure "Hanna" placed at number two, followed by Brand's other billionaire comedy "Arthur" climbing up to third place for the weekend just gone (8-10 Apr), BoxOfficeMojo reports.

"Hop" led another ho-hum weekend at the box office as the animated Easter comedy fell 43 percent to US$21.3 million and with a US$67.8 million tally in ten days, it continued to track closely to "Rango" at the same point. "Hop" is now showing at cinemas in Malaysia and Singapore.

Edging out "Arthur" for second place, "Hanna" tracked down U$12.4 million and while it is a far cry from similar movies like "Salt" and "The Bourne Identity', the action thriller's start was decent, given its humble push. "Hanna" is slated for release in Malaysia and Singapore on 21 July.

Saoirse Ronan ("The Lovely Bones") plays an aspiring young assassin set for revenge in "Hanna"

"Arthur" earned US$12.2 million but the less-hyped "Hanna" and "Soul Surfer" were relatively more impressive and the remake of classic rom-com, starring Russell Brand and Helen Mirren is scheduled for release at cinemas in Singapore on 21 April while a Malaysian release is yet to be confirmed.

Meanwhile in Malaysia, animated rare macaw named Blu in "Rio" flies to the top spot of the box office, followed by Singaporean horror comedy "The Ghost Must Be Crazy" and recent romeo Jake Gyllenhaal's action thriller "Source Code" at number three.

Other new releases and sneak shows over the weekend in Malaysia include "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never", "Mappillai", "Thank You", "Rio", "The Ghost Must Be Crazy", "Dilarang Masuk", "Source Code" and "Gantz".

New releases and sneak shows in Singapore over the weekend include "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never", "Thank You", "Mappillai", "My Best Bodyguard", "Limitless, "Rio", "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" and "Hall Pass".