Box office: Blockbusters dominate as ‘Jumanji’ overtakes ‘The Last Jedi’

As the smaller films vie for recognition at Sunday night’s Golden Globe Awards, big-budget blockbusters dominated the weekend’s box office charts.

Sony’s “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” climbed to the top of the chart for the first time since its debut, bringing in an estimated $36 million in its third week for a cumulative total of $244.4 million, according to figures from measurement firm ComScore.

Universal’s “Insidious: The Last Key,” the only new wide release this weekend, opened impressively with $29.3 million despite coming in second place on the box office charts.

January has become a strong month for debuts in the horror genre. “The Last Key” is among the biggest horror debuts ever in January behind “Split” (another Blumhouse title) and “The Devil Inside.”

The fourth installment in Blumhouse’s “Insidious” series, “The Last Key” is the second biggest opening in the franchise after “Insidious Chapter 2” opened with $40 million. It earned a B- rating on CinemaScore and a 27% “rotten” rating on review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.

In third place, Disney’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” continues to hold strong despite losing its No. 1 slot, adding $23.5 million in its fourth week for a cumulative average of $572.5 million.

Coming in fourth, Fox’s “The Greatest Showman” had the smallest decline (just 11%) among the top 10 films, raking in an additional $13.8 million after three weeks in theaters for a cumulative $77 million.

The film, which is up for best comedy or musical at the Golden Globes, features Zendaya and Zac Efron and has turned into a strong word-of-mouth success. Hugh Jackman, who stars as P.T. Barnum, is nominated for his performance in the film.

Rounding out the top five, Universal’s “Pitch Perfect 3” added another $10.2 million in its third week for a cumulative $86 million in earnings.

STX Entertainment’s “Molly’s Game,” now in its second week, and Focus’ “Darkest Hour,” now in its seventh, both saw increases in earnings after adding additional theaters.

The Jessica Chastain-led “Molly’s Game” added an additional 1,337 screens and earned $7 million this weekend, a 198% increase, for a cumulative total of $14.2 million. “Darkest Hour,” starring Gary Oldman, added 790 locations which translated into $6.3 million in earnings this weekend, a 16% increase, for a cumulative $28.4 million in earnings. Both Chastain and Oldman are nominated for Golden Globes for their performances.

Neon Rated’s “I, Tonya,” taking on an additional 193 screens for a total of 242, brought in $2.4 million, a 297% increase. To date, it has earned $53 million. Fox’s “The Post” continues to perform very well in limited release ahead of a nationwide expansion Friday.

The film, which is up for several awards at the Globes including best drama, added 27 theaters and earned $1.7 million in its third weekend for an impressive per-screen average of $47,222 and a cumulative gross of $3.8 million.

Directed by Steven Spielberg (up for best director at the Golden Globes), the drama chronicles the the Washington Post’s 1971 role in publishing what came to be known as the Pentagon Papers. Stars Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks are also nominated for awards for their performances in the film.

Next week, Lionsgate opens the Liam Neeson-led action flick “The Commuter,” Warner Bros. debuts the family adventure “Paddington 2,” and Sony Screen Gems premieres the drama “Proud Mary,” starring Taraji P Henson.

calendar@latimes.com

UPDATES:

3:40 p.m.: Added figures for “I, Tonya.”