Finding Dory and Tarzan tussle at the box office

It's the fourth of July right at the end of one of a major celebration weekend in the US. Typically, it's a time that's spent away from cinemas, hence some relatively low numbers for mid summer.

Still there were some surprises, including Finding Dory holding on at the top of the heap for a third weekend in a row, looking like over 50 million dollars for the four day weekend. It had strong competition from The Legend of Tarzan, which could hit 45 million once all those receipts are counted. Warner Bros' action film scored really well with audiences, which should bode well for it's future chances both domestically and internationally - it's out in Ireland this week.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was The Purge Election Year which came in third with an estimated four day total of 35 million dollars. That's not only a great opening for an R-rated horror film but also amounts to more than three times the films budget. This series is becoming a real earner for Blumhouse and Universal, with 232 millio worldwide in sales.