Guardians of the Galaxy tops box office for second week

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Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 dominated the competition in North American cinemas for the second weekend in a row, collecting $60.5 million for a global gross of more than $500 million, according to industry analyst Exhibitor Relations on Sunday.

The newest installment of the quirky interplanetary mercenaries, human and otherwise, includes Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, and Vin Diesel – this time on a quest to save comrade Rocket Raccoon from a doctor set on extracting his brain.

The previous week, Guardians of the Galaxy had dethroned Universal's "The Super Mario Bros. Movie." However, the video game-based "Mario," which has already generated more than $1.2 billion globally, maintained solidly in second place in its sixth week, with $13 million from Friday to Sunday.

"Book Club: The Next Chapter," a Focus Features sequel to a well-received romantic comedy for the older set, came in third place with $6.5 million in its opening weekend, which analyst David A. Gross described as a "slow start" and acknowledged that "older audiences take their time getting to these movies."

The film stars an all-star cast of Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda, Candice Bergen, and Mary Steenburgen, all of whom are in their 70s or 80s, and follows four friends on a grown-up girls' vacation to Italy.

The horror picture "Evil Dead Rise" from Warner Bros. fell one slot to fourth place, earning $3.7 million. It follows two sisters (Lily Sullivan and Alyssa Sutherland) as they battle the diabolical Deadites.

The Lionsgate comedy-drama "Are You There God? It's me Margaret," came in fifth place, down one position with a budget of $2.5 million.

Margaret Simon, played by Abby Ryder Fortson, is a sixth-grader navigating the trials of that awkward age.

The top three motion pictures coming in after were "Hypnotic" with $2.4 million, "John Wick: Chapter 4" with $1.9 million, and "Love Again" with $1.9 million.