“KUNG Fu Panda 3” easily topped the North American box office with an estimated US$41 million debut, even while it came in on the lower end of expectations for DreamWorks Animation and behind the US$47.7 million launch of “Kung Fu Panda 2” five years ago.

    China was a different story, where it opened to a spectacular US$58.3 million over the weekend, the biggest launch of all time for an animated film. “Panda” was produced by DWA and Oriental DreamWorks, with backing from the China Film Group.

    The pic is the first major U.S.-China co-production, as well as the first major Hollywood release to open simultaneously in North America and in China.

    The film earned a total of US$75.7 million internationally from a handful of markets, including China, for a global bow of US$116.7 million. In China, “Minions” previously held the record for top animated opening with an eight-day haul of US$50 million. “Panda,” which opened Friday, accomplished the feat in three days. South Korea also turned in an outstanding US$11.4 million, followed by Russia with US$5.1 million. The family film, which cost around US$145 million to produce, earned an A CinemaScore in the United States.

    “Family movies can work at any time of the year now, evidenced by the fact that 70 percent of our audience was family,” said Fox distribution chief Chris Aronson. “And this is a great date, because we have a five-week runway before another animated film opens, so ‘Kung Fu Panda’ will have a very healthy multiple.”

    The voice cast of “Kung Fu Panda 3” sees the return of franchise stars Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Lucy Liu, Jackie Chan and Seth Rogen, while Jennifer Yuh Nelson (“Kung Fu Panda 2”) shares directing duties with Alessandro Carloni. New additions to the voice cast include Bryan Cranston, Kate Hudson and J.K. Simmons.

    This time out, Po (Black) reunites with his biological father (Cranston) and travels with him to join other pandas at a secret sanctuary. But Po doesn’t fit in, and to make matters worse, he and his cohorts soon find themselves battling an evil spirit terrorizing all of China.

    Elsewhere, the weekend’s other new releases — Disney’s Coast Guard adventure-disaster film “The Finest Hours,” starring Chris Pine and Casey Affleck; Marlon Wayans’ parody “Fifty Shades of Black”; and Natalie Portman’s long-delayed “Western Jane Got a Gun” — encountered stormy waters.

    “Finest Hours” opened to roughly US$10.1 million from 3,143 locations. The Disney movie, which earned an A- CinemaScore, came in No. 3 behind “Panda 3” and Fox and New Regency’s “The Revenant,” which remains a potent player in its sixth weekend.(SD-Agencies)