Tom Cruise escapes to New Zealand after Mummy mauling

The Mummy, Universal Pictures' ambitious revival of the famous monster film, failed to scare up much of a turnout among weekend moviegoers, opening at No. 2 in North America to the Warner Bros' hit Wonder Woman.

Starring Tom Cruise, The Mummy registered sales of US$32.2 million in US and Canadian theaters, researcher ComScore Inc. estimated in a statement.

Wonder Woman brought in $57.2 million, leading for a second week. Two other films opened in wide release: It Comes at Night, a horror film, landed in sixth place, while Megan Leavey, a biopic about a young woman Marine, made its debut in eighth position.

The Mummy, from the film division of Comcast Corp., become the latest summer movie to disappoint US fans, despite having Cruise in the lead.

Cruise is escaping the backlash by holing up in New Zealand, where he's filming the sixth instalment of Mission: Impossible in Glenorchy.

For domestic theatres, the season's sales are shaping up to be among the worst in a generation, analysts said, held back by a slate that's produced only a couple of hits so far.

Negative reviews were a big factor for The Mummy. Cruise plays Nick Morton, a US soldier turned plunderer who inadvertently brings a dangerous ancient princess back to life. Just 17 per cent of critics were positive, according to aggregator RottenTomatoes.com, one of the actor's worst showings among reviewers.

Still, the film's take matched some estimates. Analysts at BoxOfficePro.com were forecasting US$32 million in weekend sales for The Mummy and eventually $100 million domestically.

The movie cost about US$125 million to make, as well as tens of millions to market.