It's a quiet box office weekend as 'GOAT' edges 'Wuthering Heights'

It was a battle of the holdovers at the North American box office this weekend, with the family friendly film ''GOAT'' edging out the R-rated ''Wuthering Heights.''

Sony Pictures Animation's ''GOAT'' took in $17 million, while Warner Bros.' ''Wuthering Heights'' earned $14.2 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. Both films are in their second weekend.

Overall, it was a quiet weekend at movie theaters around the country, with new offerings all opening under $10 million. Those results applied to the faith-based sequel ''I Can Only Imagine 2,'' the Glen Powell black comedy ''How to Make a Killing'' and the horror film ''Psycho Killer,'' which currently has a 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. One bright spot in theaters was Baz Luhrmann's immersive documentary ''EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert,'' which earned $3.3 million from only 325 locations in its limited IMAX release. That film expands to nationwide distribution on Feb. 27.

''These somewhat slower weekends can be a land of opportunity,'' said Paul Dergarabedian, the head of marketplace trends for Comscore.

''GOAT'' dropped a slim 38% in its second weekend in theaters, which the studio attributed to positive word-of-mouth. The Stephen Curry-produced movie, about a small goat with big sports dreams (voiced by ''Stranger Things''' Caleb McLaughlin) has made over $58.3 million. Globally, its running total is at $102.3 million.

''Wuthering Heights'' meanwhile fell 57% from its opening last weekend, bringing its domestic total to $60 million. Internationally it added another $26.3 million, pushing its global total to $151.7 million against an $80 million production budget. The movie's top international market continues to be the U.K., where it has made $22.5 million alone.

Third place for the weekend went to Lionsgate and Kingdom Story's ''I Can Only Imagine 2,'' a follow-up to the 2018 Dennis Quaid movie that made $86 million against a $7 million budget. The sequel opened with $8 million, a far cry from the first film's $17 million launch, though that was in line with expectations. It did score a rare A+ CinemaScore.

''How to Make a Killing'' landed in sixth place with $3.6 million. A24 released the StudioCanal movie in 1,600 North American theaters. The film, loosely inspired by ''Kind Hearts and Coronets,'' stars Powell as a man who, in a quest to acquire a $28 billion inheritance, decides to kill off his family members. Directed by John Patton Ford (''Emily the Criminal''), ''How to Make a Killing'' was not well-received by critics: it's sitting at a ''rotten'' 47% on Rotten Tomatoes.

''Psycho Killer,'' released by 20th Century Studios, fared much worse and opened outside of the top 10. The horror-thriller written by Andrew Kevin Walker ( ''Seven'' ) and directed by Gavin Polone (a notable television and film producer in his directorial debut) tanked in its first weekend in theaters with $1.6 million in ticket sales from 1,110 theaters. Audiences were not any happier with it than critics; According to PostTrak, only 31% of ticket buyers would ''definitely recommend'' it.

The year's box office is running about 5% ahead of last year and Dergarabedian expects things will start to pick up when ''Scream 7'' opens next weekend.

''It's been a kind of rollercoaster ride at the box office,'' he said.

Top 10 movies by domestic box office

1. ''GOAT,'' $17 million.

2. ''Wuthering Heights,'' $14.2 million.

3. ''I Can Only Imagine 2,'' $8 million.

4. ''Crime 101,'' $5.8 million.

5. ''Send Help,'' $4.5 million.

7. ''EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert,'' $3.3 million.

8. ''Solo Mio,'' $2.6 million.

9. ''Zootopia 2,'' $2.3 million.