Anthony Mackie's Captain America swoops into top spot at the box office

Marvel's action flick Captain America: Brave New World starring Anthony Mackie has generated $40 million (£32 million) on its first day on release in the United States.

The figure earned it top spot at the box office, according to The Numbers.

The third standalone Captain America film co-stars Hollywood legend Harrison Ford as both President Thaddeus Ross and the character's alter ego, Red Hulk.

This is the second Marvel film within the past year to enjoy impressive day-one sales - it narrowly beats last summer's highest-grossing hit, Deadpool and Wolverine, which opened with $38.5 million (£30 million) in sales on its first day in cinemas.

The news comes despite the film's lukewarm reviews. Variety described it as "a reasonably diverting time filler that feels like what it is: a pit stop in the MCU's rebooting-the-Avengers strategy", while Digital Spy declared, "Captain America: Brave New World will leave you with a feeling of "been there, seen that."

Paddington Bear made a return to the US big screen this weekend with his all-new South American adventure, Paddington in Peru, which sold enough tickets to take second spot.

The Valentine's Day-themed slasher film Heart Eyes came in third and the Chinese animated fantasy adventure Ne Zha 2 took the fourth position on the chart.