[Source: AP Entertainment]

Riding terrific reviews and strong word-of-mouth, the role-playing game adaptation “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” opened with $38.5 million in U.S. and Canadian movie theaters over the weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday, stealing the top box-office perch from “John Wick: Chapter 4.”

The Paramount Pictures and eOne release appealed to more moviegoers than many expected a film based on a notoriously niche tabletop game to interest. “Game Night” directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley turned in a rollicking comic action-adventure, with a cast including Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page and Hugh Grant, that’s bringing in ticket buyers less familiar with “D&D.” Audiences gave “Honor Among Thieves,” which launched with a raucous opening-night premiere at SXSW, an A- CinemaScore. It scored 91% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Along with “John Wick: Chapter 4,” “Creed III” and “Scream VI,” “Dungeons & Dragons” adds to a string of well-received March releases that have surpassed box-office expectations and scored well with audiences. It’s a streak that Universal Pictures’ “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” will look to continue next weekend.

Those film have helped push the 2023 box office well ahead of last year’s pace, up 28.7%, according to David A. Gross, who runs Franchise Entertainment Research. Still, overall ticket sales aren’t yet up to pre-pandemic levels, trailing the 2017-2019 average by 28.8%.

Games and toys are also proving to be dependable big-screen resources. “Dungeons & Dragons” will be followed this year by Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and a new “Transformers” movie. “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” is expected to extend a rising trend for the once-derided video game adaptation.