'Aquaman' Tops the Christmas Eve Box Office

From left to right: Amber Heard as Mera, director James Wan, Jason Momoa as Aquaman, and Willem Dafoe as Vulko (Photo by DC Comics/Warner Bros.).

LOS ANGELES – “Aquaman” topped the U.S. box office on Christmas Eve with $11.2 million in 4,125 theaters for a total of $79 million since it premiered last weekend.

“Aquaman” tells the story of Arthur Curry who learns that he is the heir to the underwater kingdom of Atlantis, and must step forward to lead his people and be a hero to the world.

Disney's “Mary Poppins Returns” was second, earning an estimated $6.4 million from 4,090 theaters for a six-day domestic total of $39 million. The movie, a sequel to the 1964 classic film, stars Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda.

“Bumblebee,” hoping to revive the Transformers franchise for Paramount, took in an estimated $3.7 million from 3,550 theaters for a four-day total of $25 million.

Universal and DreamWorks' “Welcome to Marwen,” from Universal and DreamWorks, apparently dommed to take a bath for the studios after bombing with a $2.4 million on its debut last weekend. Starring Steve Carell and directed by Robert Zemeckis, the comedy/drama seems poised to lose $50 million after a four-day tally of $2.9 million.

The romantic comedy Second Act, starring Jennifer Lopez, also opened over the weekend for STXfilms in hopes of serving as an alternative to big budget films like as “Aquaman” and “Mary Poppins Returns” but earned just $1 million on Christmas Eve for a four-day take of $7.5 million.