Disney's (DIS) "Beauty and the Beast" earned $170M in its U.S. debut over the March 19 weekend versus forecasts of $168M-$180M, setting new records for March openings as well as openings for PG-rated features.

The film, an Emma Watson-led live action remake of the 1991 original, received an A in audience polls from CinemaScore, holds a 70% approval rating on reviews aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, and was produced with a reported budget of $160M. In foreign markets, "Beauty and the Beast" took a notable $180M, including nearly $45M in China.

BOX OFFICE RUNNERS-UP: Time Warner's (TWX) "Kong: Skull Island" added $28.9M in its second weekend - dipping about 53% from its opening - alongside $38.5M from international screens. Meanwhile, Fox's (FOX) "Logan" grossed $17.5M in its third weekend for U.S. and worldwide totals of $184M and $524M. Rounding out the top five, Comcast (CMCSA) horror "Get Out" and Lionsgate (LGF) faith-based drama "The Shack" earned a respective $13.2M and $6.1M. Other publicly traded companies in filmmaking include Sony (SNE) and Viacom (VIA).