娱乐英语新闻:"Tron: Legacy 3-D" rockets on top of North America film box office

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- "Tron: Legacy 3-D," a Walt Disney Pictures retooling of the cult film classic Tron franchise which originated in 1980s, beat major box office rivals this weekend, grossing an estimated 43.6 million dollars in ticket receipts, the North America box office authority said on Sunday.

Premiering on 5,600 screens at 3,451 locations in the United States and Canada, the live-animation hybrid has received a promising B+ rating from CinemaScore. However, 28 years have elapsed since the original film hit the screen, and the techno-fantasy flick is mainly targeted at a small and niche market.

Realising that it has to wage a tough war in winning over the audience, Disney has been busy bombarding the public with a massive marketing drive.

The poster of movie "Tron: Legacy 3-D"

According to preliminary statistics provided by Disney, the majority of the audience, or 66 percent, was male, and 46 percent was 25 and under. Coupled with gross from overseas market, the Disney sequel is on pace to garner a worldwide total of 66.6 million dollars in movie ticket receipts.

"Yogi Bear," a 3-D live-action/CGI film adaptation of the Hanna-Barbera cartoon series, made its debut in North America over the weekend, taking in 16.7 million dollars from 3,515 theaters.

The Warner Bros release was also screened at 2,011 3-D venues, which accounted for 57 percent of the gross. Although the opening weekend was lower than Warner Bros. expected, executives believe that the film will hold well through the holiday season.