Box Office: ‘Furious 7’ cruises past ‘Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2’ to win Friday again

After crossing the $1 billion mark worldwide in just 17 days, “Furious 7” had no problem remaining at no. 1 Friday.  The Universal Pictures blockbuster took in another $8.3 million for $273.6 million domestic and $735.2 million overseas to date.  The big question isn't whether “Furious” will hold on to the top spot next weekend, but when will Universal officially announce an eighth movie?

Debuting solidly in second place was “Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2.”  The Kevin James sequel earned $7.3 million on Friday, but the PG rated flick should get a significant family matinee bounce on Saturday and could end up with a $22-24 million three-day.  Still, that's significantly below the $31.8 million the first “Paul Blart” debuted to in January, 2009.

Another Universal release, “Unfriended,” took third as the horror flick pulled in $6.8 million for what could be an $15-16 million debut.  With a reported production budget of just $1 million, “Unfriended” is already another cash cow for the the studio.

DreamWorks Animation's “Home” dropped to no. 4 with another $2.425 million and $134.7 million domestic to date. At this point it doesn't look like “Home” will match “The Croods'” $187.1 million gross two years ago, but considering the low expectations, “Home's” performance is considered a slam dunk.

“The Longest Ride” fell to no. 5 earning $2.4 million and $19 million in just eight days.

Friday's only other new release included Walt Disney Studios' “Monkey Kingdom” which earned !.5 million in just 2,000 theaters, Fox Searchlight's “True Story” which took in $685,000 in 831 venues and Lionsgate's “Child 44” which earned a forgettable $230,000 in just 510.

Look for final weekend estimates tomorrow on HitFix.

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