'Birds of Prey' leads box office

LOS ANGELES:  "Birds of Prey" took in $33 million to lead the North American box office, but   marked one of the lowest domestic launches in years for a studio superhero film.

The movie, starring Margot Robbie as former Joker girlfriend Harley Quinn, has reportedly drawn  strong reviews.

It is learnt that the film , directed by young Chinese-American Cathy Yan, cost just under $100 million to produce -- the lowest budget of any installment in the DC Extended Universe.

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence starer "Bad Boys for Life," slipped  one notch after topping the box office for three straight weeks, taking in $12 million.

Viewers showed renewed interest in "1917" as it  is on third place with $9.2 million for the weekend, down only slightly from the week before.

"Dolittle", based on the children´s book about a veterinarian who can talk to animals, took fourth place as it took in $6.5 million. 

Sony´s "Jumanji: The Next Level," took 5th position by earning $5.6 million to climb one spot up from the previous week . 

Other movies in  the top 10 list were:

"The Gentlemen" at sixth with $4.1 million 

"Gretel and Hansel" at seventh $3.5 million

"Little Women" at eighth with $2.5 million

"Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" at ninth with $2.4 million)

"Knives Out" at tenth $2.2 million