Jurassic Park beats Jaws in bizarre Steven Spielberg battle at 2020 box office

You’d be forgiven for thinking we’ve travelled back in time

Steven Spielberg took on Steven Spielberg in one of the most bizarre box office battles of 2020.

Over the weekend, Jaws fought Jurassic Park for the top spot following their respective re-releases amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

For months now, the global box office has been comprised of a limited number of films – ones released in countries where cinemas are still open, and the films getting good showings at drive-in cinemas in the US.

However, with cinemas around the world preparing to open their doors once again, a series of films are being slowly re-released to coax people inside.

Spielberg’s blockbusters, distributed by Universal, were considered a good place to start and, despite a close battle, Jurassic Park won.

The dinosaur action film grossed $517,600 (£414,959) at 230 locations compared with Jaws’ impressive $516,300 (£413,917) at just 187 locations.

This is the fourth time that Jurassic Park has topped the box office since its initial release in 1993.

Big studio films scheduled to be released in July include Disney’s delayed live-action version of Mulan and Christopher Nolan’s espionage thriller Tenet.

One film to capitalise on the pandemic was Woody Allen’s controversial A Rainy Day in New York, which became the biggest-selling film at the global box office after being released in South Korea.