Hollywood and Famine feast before Thanksgiving, as ‘Hunger Games’ prequel tops the box office | Fox 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV

“The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” topped the North American box office in its first weekend in theaters, generating $44 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates on Sunday.

It was a busy weekend at the movie theater, leading up to the often lucrative Thanksgiving aisle. While there was plenty to choose from at the buffet, not everything was a hit. Audiences saw “The Marvels,” which dropped a record 78% in its second weekend, as well as the nationwide debut of the family-friendly “Trolls World Tour,” Taika Waititi’s football comedy “Next Goal Wins” and the Rated R. “Thanksgiving” Slasher all in wide release.

“The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” is an interesting case study of a series that has been dormant for 8 years and is testing the waters for a new era. Its $44 million from 3,776 locations, including 1,610 premium screens, marks a low for “The Hunger Games” movies. All four Jennifer Lawrence films broke $100 million in their opening weekends (the high was the former with $158 million in 2013, and the lowest was the latter with $102.7 million in 2015).

But it’s a more nuanced story for Lionsgate, which operates differently from legacy studios by licensing its titles to international distributors, which helps cover a large portion of a film’s budget. The filmmakers kept that amount of about $100 million, which was also offset by tax credits for filming in Germany.

Adding $54.5 million from 87 international markets, the film has already grossed $98.5 million out of the gates. The studio sees it as a strong start to the prequel, which is set 64 years before Katniss Everdeen enters the picture, with a new cast led by Tom Blythe and Rachel Ziegler.

“Trying to make historical prequels, especially with no returning actors, can be a very difficult proposition,” said Adam Fogelson, senior vice president of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group. “I think the fact that we’re sitting here with $100 million in its opening weekend worldwide is a testament to the quality of the film and the quality of the talent that worked on the film and the campaign that was successful. And effective.”

For Fogelson and the filmmakers, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes represents something entirely new, darker and more dramatic that opens up new possibilities, provided writer Suzanne Collins is willing to tell more stories. He said that judging it in light of Jennifer Lawrence’s films at the height of the popularity of Collins’ books would be a “complete disservice to this film as an independent film.”

He also noted that “from a crude business perspective, it’s going to end up being an incredibly successful show for Lionsgate.”

However, critics have been mixed about this story, which is an origin story about the future president of Panem, Coriolanus Snow. It currently holds 61% on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences were more positive and movie-going behavior on holidays could be skewed. Some audiences may also be waiting to watch it with their families over the Thanksgiving holiday, said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore.

Unlike many of its big-budget counterparts, the prequel to The Hunger Games also benefited from having its stars promote the film in the lead-up, having secured a tentative deal before the SAG-AFTRA strike ended. In the wake of the still-fresh strike, other studios have had to scramble to get their newly available stars out to promote their films before the end of this week.

“Trolls Band Together,” the third installment in the animated series, opened in second place with $30.6 million in its North American debut, a total that includes earnings from early sneak screenings as of Nov. 4. It’s expected to cross $100 million globally this weekend.

Universal and DreamWorks Animation’s jukebox brings back Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake in lead vocal roles, and also sees a (asterisk) NSYNC reunion. It also received a mixed 60% on Rotten Tomatoes, but its younger audience was more positive, giving it a CinemaScore rating.

After its rocky start last weekend, expectations for “The Marvels” are only getting worse. It grossed just $10.2 million from 4,030 locations in its second weekend, placing third. Its 78% drop is a historic low for modern Marvel and superhero pictures. Internationally, it added $19.5 million, bringing its global total to $161.3 million.

“The Marvels” nearly beat Eli Roth’s R-rated horror film, “Thanksgiving,” which grossed $10.2 million from 3,204 locations. Produced by TriStar Pictures and Spyglass Media Group, the film is set in Plymouth, Massachusetts, after the Black Friday tragedy, and stars Patrick Dempsey and Addison Rae. The studio hopes to attract college students to theaters on their vacations.

Walt Disney Co. is also struggling with Searchlight Pictures’ “Next Goal Wins,” a football movie starring Michael Fassbender, which grossed $2.5 million from 2,240 locations in its first weekend to finish seventh. Directed by Taika Waititi and based on a true story, the film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival to critical acclaim.

With much better reviews and word of mouth, Focus Features’ The Holdovers, starring Paul Giamatti, is finding audiences as it continues to expand into its fourth weekend, earning $2.7 million from 1,478 theaters. A24 and Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla” similarly enjoys steady earnings of about $17 million. It is now Coppola’s second biggest film of all time, after Lost in Translation.

This week, the offerings are even more plentiful, with Disney’s “Wish,” Ridley Scott’s historical epic “Napoleon,” and Emerald Fennell’s provocative “Saltburn” expansion added to the mix.

“It’s typical for the Thanksgiving setting that people can catch up on movies big and small,” Dergarabedian said. “The problem for moviegoers is how do you choose? What films will be left on the children’s table?”

Estimated Friday-Sunday ticket sales at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final local figures will be published on Monday.

1. “The Hunger Games: Song of Songbirds and Snakes,” $44 million.

2. “Trolls Band Together,” $30.6 million.

3- The Marvels movie, $10.2 million.

4- “Thanksgiving,” $10.2 million.

5. “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” $3.5 million.

6. “The Holdovers,” $2.7 million.

7. “Next Goal Wins,” $2.5 million.

8. “Taylor Swift: Tour for the Ages,” $2.4 million.

9. “Priscilla,” $2.3 million.

10. “Killers of the Flower Moon,” $1.9 million.