‘F9’ puts charge back into movie theaters with $70M opening

LOS ANGELES (AP) — In the biggest sign yet that life is left in movie theaters, “F9” sped to $70 million in its first weekend, the biggest pandemic-era opening for a film. The ninth installment in the “Fast & Furious” franchise opened only in theaters and had the widest release of any movie since the start of the coronavirus crisis. The domestic total for “F9” topped the previous pandemic-best of $48.4 million for “A Quiet Place Part II” four weeks ago. This weekend, “A Quiet Place Part II” came in a distant second with $6.2 million, but it has now earned $136.4 million overall.