Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor: Ragnarok captures the biggest opening day gross of P38.56M!

The God of Thunder’s exciting new adventure in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor: Ragnarok opened at No.1 yesterday nationwide, capturing the biggest opening day gross for a Marvel Studios title for 2017.

The Chris Hemsworth-led blockbuster posted an otherworldly P38.56-M opening gross (including Tuesday's sneaks) and now ranks fourth in the year's biggest openers (bested only by Beauty and the Beast, Wonder Woman and Fast & Furious 8).

The top-selling cinemas are (in descending order) SM Mall of Asia (P1.67-M), SM North EDSA (P1.59-M), SM Megamall (P1.25-M), Newport Cinemas (P1.07-M), Glorietta 4 (P886,362), Trinoma (P874,529), Greenbelt 3 (P724,343), Ayala Malls Cebu (P643,876), SM Aura (P600,699) and SM Cebu (P574,834).

They are followed by Robinsons's Magnolia (P564,982), Power Plant (P561,821), SM Iloilo (P561,010), Bonifacio High Street (P536,086), Greenhills Promenade (P484,702), SM Clark (P480,530), Shang Cineplex (P480,530), Uptown Place (P472,439), SM Seaside City Cebu (P461,076) and Fisher Mall (P447,360).

Directed by Taika Waititi from a script by Craig Kyle & Christopher Yost and Stephany Folsom and Eric Pearson, Thor: Ragnarok picks up after the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron.

In the film, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is imprisoned on the other side of the universe without his mighty hammer and finds himself in a race against time to get back to Asgard to stop Ragnarok—the destruction of his homeworld and the end of Asgardian civilization—at the hands of an all-powerful new threat, the ruthless Hela (Cate Blanchett). But first he must survive a deadly gladiatorial contest that pits him against his former ally and fellow Avenger—the Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo).

The film stars Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum, Tessa Thompson, Karl Urban with Mark Ruffalo and Anthony Hopkins.

Now showing across the Philippines, Thor: Ragnarok is distributed by the Walt Disney Company.

"In the Heart of the Sea" is the greatest seafaring tales of all time

It is one of the greatest seafaring tales of all time: the Nantucket whaling ship Essex was attacked by a leviathan—a white whale of singular size and intent—leaving only a few of its crew to overcome near-impossible odds and live to recount their experience. But in the almost 200 years since that harrowing voyage, the truth faded into history, eclipsed by the celebrated novel it inspired, Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick. Now, with acclaimed director Ron Howard at the helm, the legend of the Essex, her courageous crew, and that mythic white whale comes to the big screen for the first time in Warner Bros. Pictures' epic adventure “In the Heart of the Sea.”




Moby-Dick is fiction; however “In the Heart of the Sea” brings to life the powerful saga that would fuel Melville’s defining and enduring novel. Howard says, “The true story of the Essex is fantastic. It’s visceral; it’s rich and cinematic at its core, with lots of twists and turns along the way. And though the film is set in the past, it touches on ideas about relationships, survival, humanity and nature that are relatable and thought-provoking, and connect to our own sensibilities about who we are as people.”


Howard initially received the screenplay from actor Chris Hemsworth when they were working together on “Rush.” Hemsworth, who stars in the film as Essex First Mate Owen Chase, remarks, “I loved the script from the start. ‘In the Heart of the Sea’ is about heroism and people being tested beyond their limits in absolutely every way. I was also captivated by the psychological thriller aspect of the whale turning the tables on them. There is something incredibly mysterious about how this animal is portrayed—why the whale goes on the attack, which was unlike anything the Essex crew had ever encountered. The hunter becomes the hunted.”

Howard acknowledges that when Hemsworth initially approached him about the project, “I didn’t know anything about the Essex and didn’t know the script was based on events that were very real. But when I learned this had actually happened, it was mind-blowing. I instantly began to visualize a movie that would be raw and intense…a movie that I would want to see, which is the crucial litmus test for me.”

The extraordinary journey of the Essex and her crew was chronicled by Nathaniel Philbrick in his book In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex. The author and historian, who calls Nantucket home, had a long-held fascination with the industry that had put the small Massachusetts island on the map. “The book grew out of my curiosity about how it was back in the day when Nantucket was the capital of American whaling. This was a story that got under my skin.”
Hemsworth believes the film could not have been in better hands than Howard's. “Ron has the biggest heart of anyone I know and has the best work ethic,” says Hemsworth. 

Howard reveals that is always his goal, noting,“As a filmmaker, he is always pushing the envelope. You look at the movies he’s done in his career and you can’t put them in a box—from huge comedies to compelling dramas to big action, he’s done it all, and done it with integrity and intelligence. ‘In the Heart of the Sea’ was a demanding endeavor for all of us, and when you go through something like that, you need to be arm-in-arm with one another, and supporting each other. He constantly kept us on our toes, but that’s what you want as an actor—to be challenged and inspired.” 

Opening across the Philippines on December 3, 2015 in theaters and IMAX, “In the Heart of the Sea” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

Chris Hemsworth plays the sexy weatherman in "Vacation"

Australian actor and “Thor” himself, Chris Hemsworth dips his toes in the comedy pool with New Line Cinema's adult rib tickler, “Vacation.”

Hemsworth plays Stone Crandall, a popular on-air forecaster who has done very well and is on the cusp of even more success, with the ranch and cattle and man toys to prove it. And as the Griswold's trip spirals out of control, Rusty (Ed Helms) and his family find themselves on his doorstep.

To find the perfect man that is Stone Crandall, the filmmakers looked to the gods, or at least one of them. Hemsworth, who has notably saved the world as the popular mythical figure Thor, was excited to come on board. "I grew up on the 'Vacation' films like most people my age, so I was all in," says Hemsworth. "But this was also an opportunity to do something different. I loved the script and the character and the cast involved. It was a no-brainer. I knew it would be a blast."

Hemsworth describes his character as "a cheesy weatherman, a bit of a douche bag who has some old-fashioned views of the world. He gets away with a lot of the outrageous things he's saying and doing because he's charming and you kind of forgive him for it."

Although Hemsworth is known as a dramatic actor, he was thrown into the comedy deep end with the rest of the veteran cast.

"He was astounding. Just so funny and likeable," remarks . "You know, you wanna hate a guy who's that handsome but we all developed man crushes and just wanted to hang around him."

Hemsworth describes Stone's relationship with his wife, Audrey (Leslie Mann), as "hugely sexual, I believe. It's probably the only thing that they have in common or agree upon."

That isn't all that is huge. Even bigger than his ego are his family jewels. Stone Crandall is distractingly, epicly endowed. Unfortunately, having his brother-in-law's natural perfection literally in his face only makes things worse for Rusty, who holds his own relationship up to Stone's as a measuring stick....which leads to one of the film's most outrageous scenes.

“I don’t have a background in comedy, but everyone on this film couldn’t be more welcoming or more supportive,” shares Hemsworth. “I was nervous coming into it but they’ve all made it a wonderful experience.”

Following in his father’s footsteps and hoping for some much-needed family bonding, a grown-up Rusty Griswold (Ed Helms) surprises his wife, Debbie (Christina Applegate), and their two sons with a cross-country trip back to America’s “favorite family fun park,” Walley World.


Opening across the Philippines August 19, “Vacation” is a New Line Cinema presentation and will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment company.