• by Wayne Friedman , Yesterday

In the now off-theatrical period between Labor Day and the holiday season to come, Walt Disney re-released “Avengers: Endgame” and took in $26 million in U.S. box-office revenues, according to Rentrak Movies.

The re-release comes seven years after its April 2019 start, when it went on to reach a record $1.2 billion globally for its opening weekend.

Worldwide, it went on to earn $2.8 billion for its entire initial run -- the second-highest total after 20th Century Fox’s “Avatar” (at $2.9 billion).

The movie’s weekend’s results put expected modest niche performers at a disadvantage, including Paramount Pictures’ "Heart of the Beast" (starring Brad Pitt), A24’s "Primetime" (featuring Robert Pattinson), and Universal/Dreamworks’ "Forgotten Island."

In good news for the recovering theatrical marketplace,  the third weekend in September was up 11% versus the weekend before and 60% higher than the same weekend a year ago.

Sony’s still strong “Resident Evil” still pulled in another new weekend win, at $23.3 million domestically.

"Heart of the Beast" was right behind at $20 million, followed by “Primetime” at $19.2 million. "Forgotten Island" came in fifth at $12.8 million.

Over the last 30 days (through Sept. 26), “Heart of the Beast” was the biggest ad spender on national TV with $8.3 million, according to iSpot estimates.

Warner Bros.' "Digger" (starring Tom Cruise, opening Oct. 2) was next at $5.9 million. Cruise plays an ultra-wealthy, eccentric oil tycoon and power-hungry billionaire. "Forgotten Island" was next at $5.0 million, followed by “Resident Evil” at $3.7 million.

For the most recent two week period, the well-known “Avengers: Endgame" (Encore) sparked moviegoers' interest with $2.6 million in new TV ad spend.

Another upcoming movie from Disney/20th Century Studios’s “Whalefall” (debuting Oct. 16), has spent $3.8 million so far in TV ads..