'Elvis,' 'Top Gun' tie for box-office crown with $30.5M each

Baz Luhrmann's Elvis Presley biopic “Elvis” shook up theaters with an estimated $30.5

million in weekend ticket sales, but — in a box-office rarity — “Elvis” tied “Top Gun: Maverick,"

which also reported $30.5 million, for No. 1 in theaters.

Final figures Monday, once Sunday's grosses are tabulated, will sort out which film ultimately

won the weekend. With a high degree of accuracy, studios can forecast Sunday sales based on

Friday and Saturday business, though numbers often shift by a few hundred thousand dollars.

But for now, the unlikely pair of “Elvis” and “Maverick” are locked in a dance off (if you favor

“Elvis”) or a dead heat (if you prefer “Maverick”). That it was this close at all was due to both a

better-than-expected opening for “Elvis” and remarkably strong continued sales for “Top Gun: Maverick.