“Avengers: Age of Ultron” Closing In On $1 Billion

No one can keep pace with the Avengers.

Cinema’s preeminent superhero team towered over the competition, as “Avengers: Age of Ultron” topped the foreign box office this weekend with an estimated $68.3 million. That brought its global total to $875.3 million.

With a China opening scheduled for next Tuesday, the Disney/Marvel release should pass $1 billion at some point next week. Its worldwide haul is already ahead of the majority of Marvel titles, besting the lifetime grosses of “Captain America” ($371 million), “Thor” ($449 million), “Iron Man” ($583 million), “Iron Man 2″ ($622 million), “Thor: The Dark World” ($645 million), “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” ($714 million) and “Guardians of the Galaxy” ($774 million).

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The Clintons Earned $25 Million In Speaking Fees Since Last January

Hillary Rodham Clinton and former President Bill Clinton earned in excess of $25 million for delivering more than 100 speeches since the beginning of 2014, a huge infusion to their net worth as she was readying for a presidential bid.

The Clintons revealed their recent income as paid speakers and other aspects of their personal finances in disclosure forms filed Friday. The details in the documents were confirmed by a senior Clinton campaign official.

Hillary Clinton also earned $5 million in royalties for her book, “Hard Choices,” which was released in June.

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Jackie Chan Signs On For “Shanghai Dawn” With Owen Wilson, In Talks With The “Expendables” Franchise Too

2000’s Shanghai Noon, an American-Chinese western that paired the overly talkative outlaw Roy O’Bannon (Wilson) with the loyal member of the Chinese Imperial Guard Chon Wang (Chan) in a story that involved them rescuing a princess, was enough of a hit to warrant a sequel. Three years later, Shanghai Knights hit theaters, earning slightly more than the original.

Last year, Chan spoke with Den of Geek, and while he’s said in multiple interviews he’s done with big action films (he’s in his 60s), he’s in talks to return or join several major franchises, from Expendables 4and Rush Hour 4 to Karate Kid 2 and yes, Shanghai Dawn. At the time, he just said “in talks” but according to Tracking Board‘s new report, MGM is actually now moving forward with the sequel to Shanghai Knights.

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Forbes’ Top 10 Fashion Brands

Forbes has released its rankings for the world’s most valuable brands in 2015. Covering everything from aerospace and oil & gas, to the media and retail industries, the comprehensive rankings rate each brand by their total value and brand revenue by one-year change in value as well as the amount the company spent on advertising, among other factors. At the top of the pack are major tech companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Google and IBM, with the top fashion brands being Louis Vuitton, coming in at 14th place, and Nike, at 18th place. Check out the listing for the world’s top 10 most valuable fashion brands in 2015 below, and find the entire rankings here.

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