Imaginary friend flick 'If' tops box office

LOS ANGELES

Paramount Pictures' imaginary friend film "If" debuted atop the North American box office this weekend, taking in an estimated $35.0 million, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported on May 19.

The John Krasinski-directed family comedy stars Cailey Fleming as a young girl who, along with neighbor Ryan Reynolds, embarks on an adventure to reconnect forgotten made-up playmates with their children.

It snatched top spot from Twentieth Century's action sci-fi "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes," which dropped to second place with $26.0 million for the Friday-through-Sunday period, still boasting an impressive $101.2 million made since its release earlier this month.

In third was new horror film "The Strangers: Chapter 1," at $12.0 million, which follows a young couple terrorized by masked strangers at a remote cabin in an eerie small town.

Fourth place at $8.5 million went to Universal's action-comedy "The Fall Guy." Ryan Gosling plays a stuntman working on a film directed by his ex-girlfriend Emily Blunt.

And in fifth at $2.9 million was tennis-based romance "Challengers," starring actor/singer Zendaya as an athlete-turned-coach, which kept its top-five Box Office status for a fourth consecutive week.

Rounding out the top 10 were "Back to Black" ($2.9 million), "Tarot" ($2.0 million), "Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire" ($1.7 million), "The Blue Angels" ($1.3 million) and "Unsung Hero" ($1.1 million).