Weekend news roundup 09/09: Box office latest & US Open victors

Jonathan Victoria • 11 Sep 2024 News

Been a good while since we’ve done one of these…

Sinner & Sabalenka, King and Queen of the hard court

Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka are champions of the hard court once again as the pair came away from the US Open victorious in their respective singles competitions.

Sabalenka ruined New York states very own Jessica Pegula’s big night, defeating her in straight sets to win her first US Open title, redemption for last year's final loss to Coco Gauff. It also makes it two Grand Slam titles this year and three in total for her career, having won the previous two editions of the Australian Open.

Sinner then spoilt the US party again by beating home nation hero Taylor Fritz in straight sets, collecting his first US Open title and second Grand Slam title of the year and of his career, following his Australian Open victory at the beginning of the year.

With Sinner collecting two Grand Slams this year and Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz taking the other two (French Open and Wimbledon), the pair's clean sweep this year marks the first time that no Grand Slam title has been won by either Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer in a calendar year since 2002.

Credit: Jessica Pegula vs. Aryna Sabalenka Highlights | 2024 US Open Final (US Open Tennis Championship, YouTube)

Beetlejuice sequel claims box office top spot

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice has finally arrived and it seems people were looking forward to it as it stormed to the top of the box office with a solid $110m domestic debut total -  the second-biggest September debut in history.

The film's strong box office numbers come somewhat as a surprise following its mixed reviews from critics originally, although many now have praised the film and it sees generally more positive reviews.

Unadjusted for inflation, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice has already surpassed the full box office total for the original film, which totalled $74m back in 1988.

As for the rest of the domestic box office this weekend, in third was Reagan with $5.2m and in second remains Deadpool & Wolverine, which is still kicking about with a further $7.2m this weekend, taking that total to $614m domestically and £1.2bn worldwide. 

Credit: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice | Official Trailer 2 (Warner Bros. Pictures, YouTube)

ParalympicsGB finish Paris 2024 with second-most medals

The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games has concluded and the ParalympicsGB squad have a lot to celebrate come the end, boasting a haul of 124 medals, including 49 golds and a medal in 18 of the 19 sports they competed in.

For the third consecutive games, the GB squad finished second in the standings for total medals and gold medals, finishing behind China, who had an unbelievably strong summer.

ParalympicsGB’s 49 golds marks an increase from Tokyo 2020 by eight gold medals, and from the 215 athletes who competed this summer, over half found themselves stepping foot on the podium.

A notable highlight from the 11 days of competition came on day four, when they won 12 gold medals throughout the day - the greatest number in a single day this century.

Major update for Ocean’s 14

Where there is smoke, there is fire, and in this case, the smoke is major updates to the fire of Ocean’s 14, a new entry in the beloved Ocean’s franchise. Better yet, the major update is that original series stars Brad Pitt and George Clooney have signed on for the new film, with the pair also courting Edward Berger to take over directorial duties.

Warner Bros and Smokehouse, Clooney production company that will be producing the film, have been said to be “working diligently” on Ocean’s 14, with Clooney stating they “had a strong script that was in the spirit of Going in Style.”

So far, the only updates to the film are that Clooney and Pitt seem to be set to star,  as well as Berger being courted but no official offer is on the table just yet.

Moeen Ali retires from international cricket

England all-rounder Moeen Ali has retired from all forms of international cricket, stepping away after competing in 68 Tests, 138 ODIs and 92 T20Is for the national side.

The decision comes after the 37-year-old was left out of England’s T20I squad that will be facing Australia later in the month.

Ali previously retired from international Test cricket in September 2021 but returned to be included in the squad for the 2023 Ashes. At the conclusion of the final match, he joined Stuart Broad in officially retiring from Test cricket for good.

A stellar international player, Ali featured in the England sides that won the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2019 and the ICC T20 World Cup in 2022.