Box office: ‘Need for Speed’ drives past ‘300’ sequel

The video-game-inspired action film “Need for Speed” outpaced the competition at the box office Friday night, taking in $6.6 million, according to estimates.

Starring “Breaking Bad” star Aaron Paul in his first role since the hit AMC crime drama concluded, the car chase-heavy movie that shares a title with a long-running racing game franchise was expected to earn between $25 million and $30 million in its first weekend, according to those who have seen pre-release audience surveys.

The sequel “300: Rise of an Empire” was not far behind with an estimated $5.8 million Friday night. The film was last weekend’s box office leader with $45 million in domestic ticket sales.

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“Need for Speed” is off to a much faster start than the weekend’s other big-screen debut, “Tyler Perry’s The Single Moms Club.” The film earned an estimated $3.2 million on its opening night, and the movie was expected to take in approximately $18 million this weekend. That total would be consistent with recent movies from Tyler Perry, though far from his best.

Elsewhere “Mr. Peabody and Sherman” earned an estimated $5.4 million Friday night, followed by the Liam Neeson-starring action movie “Non-Stop,” which took in another $3.2 million heading into its third weekend.

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Twitter: @chrisbarton