AceShowbiz - John Wick has knocked down Earth's Mightiest Heroes at the North American box office. "John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum" has ended the reign of three-week champion "Avengers: Endgame" with an estimated $57 million in its opening weekend.

Beating early industry estimates of $45-55 million debut, the third installment in the action thriller film series posts the best opening of the franchise. It surpassed its predecessors, 2014's "John Wick" ($14.4 million) and 2017's "John Wick: Chapter 2" ($30.4 million). "Parabellum" is also the first installment in the film series to debut at No. 1 on the domestic chart.

Fueled by positive reviews (an approval rating of 89% on Rotten Tomatoes) and an A- audience score on CinemaScore, the movie is expected to have a long run at the chart. "This is the best reviewed film of the series so far," Lionsgate chairman Joe Drake says in a statement. "We believe word-of-mouth will continue to drive strong business for the film all over the world."

Internationally, "John Wick 3" raked in $35.2 million from 66 territories over the weekend. It has now amassed a total of $149.2 million worldwide.

"Avengers: Endgame" drops to No. 2 with an estimated addition of $29.4 million, down 53.5% from last week. It has now collected $770.8 million domestically so far, passing "Avatar" as the second highest-grossing movie ever in the U.S. and Canada. "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" is still No. 1 with $937 million.

"Pokemon Detective Pikachu" is also down one place to No. 3 with approximately $24.8 million for a current domestic total of $94 million. A new release, "A Dog's Journey", arrives below expectations at No. 4 with approximately $8 million from 3,200 venues. It's far below its predecessor, 2017's "A Dog's Purpose", which opened to $18 million and went on to earn $64 million at the domestic box office.

Jim Orr, Universal's president of domestic distribution, remains optimistic about the movie's long run, given its glowing A CinemaScore from the audience compared to its 49% on Rotten Tomatoes. "The first film had incredible legs," Orr argues. "With the holiday weekend, we're optimistic about the run it will have."

Anne Hathaway and Rebel Wilson-starring comedy "The Hustle" rounds out the top five with an estimated $6.1 million in its second week, dropping two slots from last weekend's No. 3.

Top Ten Movies at Weekend Box Office for May 17-19:

1. "John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum" - $57 million
2. "Avengers: Endgame" - $29.4 million
3. "Pokemon Detective Pikachu" - $24.8 million
4. "A Dog's Journey" - $8 million
5. "The Hustle" - $6.1 million
6. "The Intruder" - $4 million
7. "Long Shot" - $3.4 million
8. "The Sun Is Also a Star" - $2.6 million
9. "Poms" - $2.1 million
10. "Uglydolls" - $1.6 million