‘Insidious 3’ wins Friday box office; ‘Spy’ and ‘San Andreas’ strong

“Insidious: Chapter 3” scared up $10.4 million at the Friday box office, squeaking out a surprising early victory over Melissa McCarthy’s new action-comedy “Spy” and reaffirming the ever-reliable draw of low-budget horror flicks.

But with a $10.3-million haul on Friday, “Spy” is expected to handily outpace “Insidious” over the rest of the weekend to take first place, with a total in the neighborhood of $30 million.

Directed by Paul Feig (“Bridesmaids”), the R-rated comedy about an unassuming CIA analyst (McCarthy) who goes undercover to take on an international arms dealer has earned strong reviews, in stark contrast to the last major female-driven action-comedy to hit theaters, Reese Witherspoon’s “Hot Pursuit,” which opened with just $13.9 million last month. But “Spy” is looking to open lower than Feig’s previous outing with McCarthy, “The Heat,” which – thanks in part to the added drawing power of co-star Sandra Bullock – debuted in June 2013 to $39 million.

Last weekend’s box office topper, Dwayne Johnson’s earthquake film “San Andreas,” continued to shake things up, taking in $7.6 million on Friday. Dropping less than 60% from its debut, the Warner Bros. film is expected to take second place by the end of the weekend with around $26 million – which will put it within spitting distance of $100 million in total receipts since its opening.

“Entourage,” which drew surprisingly strong numbers in its debut on Wednesday, took in just $3.7 million on Friday, suggesting that, while the diehard fans of the HBO series came out early, the film hasn’t managed to catch on with a wider audience. The film is expected to end the weekend with a less than bro-tastic $18 million for its first five days.

In its second weekend, director Cameron Crowe’s much-maligned dramedy “Aloha” is on pace to earn just $3.5 million, barely enough to hold on to a spot in the top 10. Cue the sad ukelele music.

In limited release, “Love and Mercy,” a biopic about Beach Boys leader Brian Wilson, opened with an impressive $625,000 on Friday on just 483 screens on the strength of good vibrations from reviewers. Meanwhile, one of the summer’s most critically acclaimed tentpole releases thus far, “Mad Max: Fury Road,” roared past the $300 million mark internationally.

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