LOS ANGELES: ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ saw weekend ticket sales drop to an estimated US$17.6 million but still extended its rule of the North American box office for a fourth week, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations said Sunday.

The Disney/Marvel sequel had taken in nearly US$46 million for the previous Fridaythrough-Sunday period. Still, its domestic total has now reached an impressive US$393.7 million on top of US$339 million in international ticket sales.

Universal’s new holiday-timed ‘Violent Night’ placed second for the weekend at US$13.3 million, ‘a solid opening for an action comedy,’ said David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research. David Harbour of ‘Stranger Things’ fame stars as a cranky, sledgehammer-wielding Santa who comes to the rescue when bad guys invade a rich family’s home on Christmas Eve. Gross said the film should play well until the December 16 release of much-anticipated ‘Avatar: The Way of Water.’

Disney’s computer-animated sci-fi film ‘Strange World’ claimed third place while taking in just US$4.9 million. Given its US$180 million production budget, ‘the movie could lose more than US$100 million,’ according to HollywoodReporter.com.

In fourth was Searchlight’s horror-comedy ‘The Menu,’ at US$3.6 million.

Ralph Fiennes plays a celebrity chef who serves up some dark surprises.

And in fifth was Sony’s ‘Devotion,’ an action movie about two US fighter pilots during the Korean War, at $2.8 million.