‘Guardians’ on top of sluggish N. America box office

This undated image released by Disney – Marvel shows, from left, Zoe Saldana, the character Rocket Racoon, voiced by Bradley Cooper, Chris Pratt, the character Groot, voiced by Vin Diesel and Dave Bautista in a scene from “Guardians Of The Galaxy”. AP FILE PHOTO

LOS ANGELES – Science-fiction blockbuster “Guardians of the Galaxy” remained on top of the North American box office this weekend as Hollywood licked its wounds after the worst summer season in years, industry estimates showed Sunday.

The Marvel comics adaptation added another $10.2 million to its six-week haul, pushing it closer to the $300 million mark with $294.6 million in earnings, according to figures from box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

The performance of “Guardians of the Galaxy” was a rare bright spot in a dismal summer season, which drew to a close last week after posting its worst numbers since 2006, down 15 percent from 2013.

Second place in the standings was occupied by “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”, which added $6.5 million to its total earnings of $174.6 million.

In third place was teen melodrama “If I Stay,” which earned $5.75 million, followed by comedy “Let’s Be Cops” with $5.4 million.

“The November Man” was fifth with $4.2 million. The thriller stars former James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan as an ex-CIA agent lured out of retirement for one last dangerous mission.

Sixth place went to “As Above/So Below,” a thriller set in the catacombs beneath Paris, which took in $3.72 million.

“When the Game Stands Tall,” based on the true story of a US high school coach who leads his team on a 151-game winning streak, remained in seventh place with $3.7 million.

In eighth spot was dystopian drama “The Giver” based on Lois Lowry’s 1993 novel, starring Jeff Bridges, Meryl Streep and Brenton Thwaites, which took $3.6 million.

“The Hundred Foot Journey,” a romantic comedy with Helen Mirren and Om Puri as culture-clashing restaurateurs, was ninth with $3.2 million.

Tenth spot was taken by “Lucy,” director Luc Besson’s sci-fi drama starring Scarlett Johansson as a drug mule who acquires psychic powers when she accidentally takes a potent new substance during a deal that goes wrong. The film took in $1.9 million.