'The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard' likely to face challenges

"The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard"  debuted with $11.6 million from 3,331 U.S. venues over the weekend, nabbing the top spot on box office charts.

According to Reuters, the sequel to the 2017 action comedy "The Hitman's Bodyguard," opened on the big screen on Wednesday and has collected $17 million to date.

The news agency said the film cost nearly $70 million to produce so it could face challenges turning a profit in theaters.

Starring Salma Hayek, Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson, "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard" is one of the rare post-vaccine era movies to play exclusively in theaters. Opening weekend crowds were mostly older men, with 55% of ticket buyers identifying as male and 66% over the age of 25.

As the only new nationwide release, the poorly reviewed "The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard" didn't have much competition to claim No. 1 in North America. Falling not far behind, Paramount's "A Quiet Place Part II" slid to second place with $9.4 million in ticket sales, representing a mere 22% drop from the weekend prior. After four weeks in theaters, the film -- directed by John Krasinski and featuring Emily Blunt -- has generated a strong $125 million to date.