HOLLYWOOD_”It appears religion was on the mind of many audiences this weekend as the biblical epic “Noah” took the top spot.  Some were skeptical about whether Darren Aronofsky’s take on the biblical character would satisfy moviegoers, and it appears so to the tune of $44 million. Not a bad debut for a movie that many expected to flop.  

 

Taking the #2 spot was “Divergent” which saw its numbers pummel close to 50 percent from the previous week, with a tally a little over $26 million. In just two weeks the picture is already a few million from the $100 million club. Falling into the #3 spot is the movie “Muppets Most Wanted” with around $11 million. The picture which is a disappointment compared to its 2011 predecessor has already taken in over $30 million in two weeks.

 

Kids are still in love with “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” which added another $9.5 million to its total, the picture has already crossed the $100 million mark. Rounding out the top five was last week’s surprise debut “God’s Not Dead” which took in another $9 million at the box-office. There appears to be a religious wakening at the box-office for 2014, which clearly states there is an audience for such movies.

 

All will change this weekend, as “Captain America: The Winter Solider” invades the multiplex. We can expect big bucks to be drawn by the Marvel superhero, as the movie opened to massive numbers overseas, nearly the take of $75 million. I’d say that number is likely to be matched domestically if not bigger.