Box Office Update

[Castiel]

The numbers for Gangster Squad depress me. Phenomenal movie, thought it would do better with such a talented cast too.

 

[Fuji Vice]

The numbers for Gangster Squad depress me. Phenomenal movie, thought it would do better with such a talented cast too.

It may have done better if it had come out back in the summer when it was supposed to. The delay probably dropped a lot of interest. I thought it was pretty good as well.


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[Wang Chung]

This weekend, Universal's Identity Thief blew onto the scene with a surprisingly strong opening, while Steven Soderbergh's supposed last directorial effort debuted mildly in third. Returning films held on reasonably well, especially those of the Oscar variety.

Exploding into first place was Identity Thief, starring Jason Bateman and Melissa McCarthy, with an estimated $36.6M from 3,141 theaters, for a potent per-screen average of $11,650. Despite the controversial review of formerly influential critic Rex Reed, audiences dug the film, which outgunned the opening weekends of Bateman's Horrible Bosses ($28.3M) and McCarthy's Bridesmaids ($26.2), both from the summer of 2011. Instead Identity Thief opened in line with last year's spring hit 21 Jump Street which debuted with $36.3M on its way to $138.7M. If last year was the year of Tatum, could this year be the year of McCarthy, who has The Heat co-starring Sandra Bullock on tap for later this summer.

Second place belonged to the warm and fuzzy zombies of Warm Bodies. Dipping a reasonable 43% from its debut weekend, the Summit release ate up an estimated $11.5M bringing its cume to $35.5M.

Third place belonged to Side Effects directed by Oscar winner Steven Soderbergh, who claims this will be his last film. The thriller, which stars last year's "It Boy" Tatum, couldn't live up to the pair's last collaboration Magic Mike ($39.1M from last summer) and opened mildly with $10M, according to estimates, from 2,605 theaters for a per-screen average of only $3,845. I have a hard time imagining Soderbergh will be happy to go out on a note like this, so I'm betting he'll be back in the next couple of years.

The rest of the top 10 had a familiar look to it as Oscar films continued their push to Super Sunday on the 24th of this month. Leading the pack in its 13th weekend was Silver Linings Playbook, which fell a slim 11% to $6.9M this weekend, according to estimates, bringing its total to $89M. Fifth place belonged to the fairy tale darlings Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters which dropped 39% from last weekend to an estimated $5.8M, bringing its cume to $43M.

Sixth place belonged to the horror-thriller Mama which slipped 34% to an estimated $4.3M and a current total of $63.7M, impressive for a horror film. Jennifer Lawrence's biggest rival for the Best Actress Oscar landed in seventh place as Jessica Chastain and Zero Dark Thirty slid 23% from last weekend to $4M, according to estimates, bringing the war thriller to $83M.

On an amazing award winning streak, Ben Affleck's Argo added 470 theaters this weekend and jumped back into the top 10 in its 18th weekend, adding an additional $2.5M, according to estimates, bringing its total to $123.2M. Fellow Best Picture nominee Django Unchained took in an estimated $2.3M this weekend, bringing Quentin Tarantino's highest grossing film to $154.2M. And rounding out the top 10 was the Sylvester Stallone flop Bullet to the Head which dropped 56% from its dull opening to an estimated $2M, bringing its miserable total to $7.9M. One other film of note, the 3D IMAX re-release of Tom Cruise's classic Top Gun debuted just outside the top 10 with $1.9M from 300 screens for a per screen average of $6,333, second best in the top 20.

The top ten films grossed $85.8M which was down 49% from last year when The Vow and Safe House both debuted north of $40M; and down 33% from 2011 when the triumvirate of Just Go With It, Justin Bieber: Never Say Never and Gnomeo & Juliet all opened between $25M and $30M.

Identity Thief $36.6M
Warm Bodies $11.5M
Side Effects $10.0M
Silver Linings Playbook $6.9M
Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters $5.8M
Mama $4.3M
Zero Dark Thirty $4.0M
Argo $2.5M
Django Unchained $2.3M
Bullet to the Head $2.0M

Figured Identity Thief would be tops this week oh well. Some of these I can't believe are even in the top 10 only making 2 mil.

 

[Fuji Vice]

No big shock about Identity Thief, but it scares me that people would be willing to pay money to see it. Might check out Side Effects now that I've had a chance to read some positive reviews.

 

[Wang Chung]

No big shock about Identity Thief, but it scares me that people would be willing to pay money to see it. Might check out Side Effects now that I've had a chance to read some positive reviews.

There is not much playing that I really want to go see. I still for some reason want to see Renner kick ass in Hansel and Gretel

 

[Fuji Vice]

There is not much playing that I really want to go see. I still for some reason want to see Renner kick ass in Hansel and Gretel

Stallone's movie was good despite the box office, but it'll play just as well at home. I'll wait for home for Hansel and Gretel as well, it's only playing in 3D up here and I've already done my 3D for the year with Texas Chainsaw. : That Warm Bodies movie is doing pretty well considering how awful it looks.

 

[Wang Chung]

I am just waiting for Thursday personally. I don't care how Shitty Die hard is I will watch everyone that comes out.

 

[Fuji Vice]

I am just waiting for Thursday personally. I don't care how Shitty Die hard is I will watch everyone that comes out.

Me too. This one doesn't look amazing, but I'm sure it will be a fun time at the theatre.


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[Wang Chung]

The Presidents' Day holiday frame saw three films generate $20-25M in ticket sales but the action sequel A Good Day to Die Hard made enough to earn the number one spot. Comedy holdover Identity Thief dropped to second place while the new romance Safe Haven bowed in third. Overall box office was down from last year's robust holiday while Oscar contenders for Best Picture remained popular with moviegoers looking for quality cinema.

Bruce Willis anchored his first solo number one hit in thirteen years with his return as John McClane in A Good Day to Die Hard which grossed an estimated $25M over the Friday-to-Sunday period. The R-rated Fox release averaged a good but not stellar $7,036 from 3,553 locations and grossed $33.2M since its Thursday launch on Valentine's Day. The five-day debut including Monday Presidents' Day should end up about $10M less than the $48.4M five-day Wednesday-to-Sunday opening of the last film in the series, Live Free or Die Hard from June 2007 which was the only PG-13 chapter in the series. The new Russian-set story enjoyed higher ticket prices plus some IMAX premiums. The prior film, 1995's Die Hard with a Vengeance, bowed to $22.2M which would be roughly $40M at today's prices.

Reviews were dreadful for the poorly-titled Good Day, easily the worst ever for the quarter-century-old franchise. The story found the wisecracking cop heading to Moscow to help his son, a CIA agent in trouble with master criminals. Older action heroes have been rejected by audiences lately with both Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone striking out in recent weeks with The Last Stand and Bullet to the Head, respectively. But based on his most popular character, Bruce saw more box office on his opening day of Die Hard than those films took in on their entire opening weekends.

A Good Day to Die Hard skewed as expected to older men. Studio research showed that 55% of the crowd was male and 65% was 25 and older. The CinemaScore grade was a respectable B+. While domestic interest in Die Hard has cooled, overseas numbers were hot. The fifth Die Hard grossed $61.5M from 63 markets this weekend upping the international total to $80.1M including some Asian markets like Korea and Taiwan which debuted last weekend. Leading the way were the U.K. with $7.6M, Japan with $6.8M, Russia's $6.7M, and Germany with $6.4M. Korea stands at $8.8M after its sophomore frame with France and Brazil opening next weekend plus China and Australia launching in March. Many Latin American markets more than doubled the openings of the last Die Hard. A final worldwide cume of over $350M is possible for the new pic. Action franchises like these usually continue on thanks in large part to overseas revenue potential.

Last weekend's muscular number one smash Identity Thief found another sizable audience in its second round with an estimated $23.4M for an encouraging decline of only 32%. Universal has amassed a sizable $70.7M in ten days and could be headed for a finish in the vicinity of $130M. That is an impressive amount for a film that cost only $35M to produce.

Young women propelled the new romance Safe Haven into third place with an estimated $21.4M from 3,223 theaters for a solid $6,649 average. The Relativity release debuted at number one on Thursday with $8.8M because of Valentine's Day but held its own over the weekend too leading to a $30.3M four-day start from Thursday-to-Sunday - just $3M behind the much more expensive Die Hard.

Reviews were dreadful, but that is common for romance movies based on Nicholas Sparks novels. Starring Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough, the PG-13 film played to an audience that was 71% female and 68% under 25. Safe Haven's four-day start was even with the $30.5M three-day debut of 2010's Dear John, also based on a Sparks book, which had much more starpower with Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried.

The Weinstein Co. scored a victory in fourth place with the 3D animated film Escape From Planet Earth which bowed to an estimated $16.1M over the three days since its Friday debut. With zero kidpics released by studios so far this year, the PG-rated toon had the family market all to itself and averaged a decent $4,886 from 3,288 locations. The CinemaScore was a B+.

Hollywood has programmed an excessive number of R-rated action films into the first two months of the year to go along with the string of adult-skewing Oscar contenders which have been mostly rated R. That created a huge void for this segment of the audience and with schools off for the long holiday frame, parents had no other options. The performance of Escape was especially good for a movie not based on a well-known brand, not from a big supplier of animated movies like Pixar or DreamWorks, and not featuring any major names in the voice cast. The Monday holiday should add plenty more for the long four-day weekend. Reviews were poor.

The hit zombie romance Warm Bodies scored a hot sophomore frame dipping only 21% against stiff competition collecting an estimated $9M. The Summit film has now grossed a stellar $50.2M in just 17 days and should continue to see much more thanks to terrific word-of-mouth. Picking up lost business due to last weekend's east coast blizzard played a factor, but audiences are liking this unique story which is becoming a sleeper hit.

Bodies may have siphoned off some of the target audience for the supernatural tale Beautiful Creatures which bombed debuting to just $7.5M from 2,950 locations for a weak $2,529 average. Taking in $10M since its Thursday release, the PG-13 film based on the best-selling young adult novel hoped to connect with young women. But competition was tough and reviews were not encouraging. A middling B CinemaScore does not bode well for a teen-skewing film made to make most of its money upfront.

Steven Soderbergh's drama Side Effects enjoyed a decent hold in its second weekend dipping 32% to an estimated $6.3M pushing the ten-day cume to $19.1M for Open Road. Best Picture contender Silver Linings Playbook once again eased by a scant amount. The Weinstein Co. hit grossed an estimated $6.1M, off only 5%, for a $98.5M total. It will crack nine digits on Monday or Tuesday.

Falling 40% to an estimated $3.5M was Paramount's Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters which has banked $49.7M to date. Rounding out the top ten was Oscar contender Zero Dark Thirty which slipped just 23% to an estimated $3.1M giving Sony $88M overall.

In the final full weekend before the Academy Awards, moviegoers kept sampling all the major contenders with four more Best Picture nominees filling up spots on the chart with small declines. Front-runner Argo dipped only 6% to an estimated $2.2M putting Warner Bros. at $126.9M domestically and $204M worldwide. The Ben Affleck hit lands on Blu-ray this Tuesday and is preparing itself for a new audience on multiple platforms should it win Best Picture next Sunday. Lincoln, another big player, eased 10% to an estimated $1.7M for a cume to date of $176.3M. Worldwide is $235.3M.

Ang Lee's Life of Pi declined by only 13% in its 13th weekend to an estimated $1.5M for $110.8M so far in North America and a stunning $577M globally. The Weinstein Co. collected an estimated $1.5M as well for Django Unchained, down 35%, with $157M domestic to date. Worldwide is now up to $365.6M. Les Misérables suffered the worst drop of any Best Picture contender falling 45% to an estimated $855,000 with $145.6M overall. Sony Classics expanded the French-language hit Amour and saw sales surge 92% to an estimated $721,000. Cume is $3.9M.

All eight Best Picture contenders that are still in theaters now finished in the Top 20 this weekend. The nine nominees together have grossed a whopping $918M domestically and an eye-popping $2 billion worldwide. Oscar ratings should see a boost this year since so many movie fans have actually seen so many of the top contenders.

The top ten films grossed an estimated $121.3M which was down 12% from the Friday-to-Sunday portion of last year's Presidents' Day frame when Safe House climbed into the number one spot with $23.6M; and down 4% from 2011 when Unknown debuted in the top spot with $21.9M.

A Good Day To Die Hard $25.0M
Identity Thief $23.4M
Safe Haven $21.4M
Escape From Planet Earth 3D $16.1M
Warm Bodies $9.0M
Beautiful Creatures $7.5M
Side Effects $6.3M
Silver Linings Playbook $6.1M
Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters $3.5M
Zero Dark Thirty $3.1M

No shock here that Die Hard was tops. I saw it and thought it was decent not the best entry into the series but better than the idiot critics think anyways. Still surprised to see a few entries on this top 10 of the weekend I thought some had played their way out of theaters already.

 

[Wang Chung]

The big-budget fantasy epic Jack the Giant Slayer opened at number one at the North American box office, however its weak performance hardly justified the enormous production and marketing costs invested into the fairy tale actioner. Other new releases were also soft in their debuts as moviegoers showed little excitement over any of these new titles. March came in like a lamb as the Top 20 grossed only $105M, down sharply compared to the first weekend of this month from each of the last three years.

The year's first mega-budgeted tentpole entry failed to create much of a stir as Jack the Giant Slayer bowed to an estimated $28M from 3,525 locations for a moderate $7,946 average. The gross for the Warner Bros. release included higher ticket prices from 3D screens including 317 IMAX venues which accounted for 12% of the gross. With a reported production budget in the $190-200M range, plus a massive war chest for marketing costs, Jack was a huge gamble costing more than many summer blockbusters. Outside of action sequels and anything James Cameron feels like making, few original films carry budgets like this.

Giant Slayer even opened worse than last March's mega-priced 3D action offering John Carter which debuted to $30.2M on its way to $73.1M domestic and $284M global. It led to huge corporate loses and executive departures for Disney. Universal's 2D Battleship, also with a gargantuan budget, opened to $25.5M finishing with $65.2M from North America and $303M worldwide. Jack the Giant Slayer now joins those two and will need phenomenal overseas numbers to make the math work. The other two duds did 74-79% of their global grosses from offshore markets.

Delayed from its Summer 2012 release date, the Bryan Singer-directed Slayer was stuck in a no man's land. The PG-13 film was too violent for younger children who would be the ones most interested in the subject matter. But the source material was too lame for older kids and beyond who are ok with this type of effects-heavy adventure violence. Reviews were mixed and audiences polled by CinemaScore gave it a decent B+ grade. Studio data showed that the audience was 55% male and 56% over 25.

The beanstalk tale opened in ten Asian markets this weekend and grossed $13.7M led by Korea's $4.9M. Most other major markets will open later this month closer to Easter school holidays. Reaching a $300M worldwide gross will be very hard.

For the fourth weekend in a row, the runaway hit comedy Identity Thief ranked among the top two films nationwide, this time dipping only 31% to an estimated $9.7M. The Melissa McCarthy-Jason Bateman pic became the first 2013 movie to break the $100M mark and has now banked an impressive $107.4M to date for Universal. Despite bad reviews, regular mainstream moviegoers have been eating up this funny twosome with Thief on track to end with over $130M. The studio will be looking to reteam these actors in a sequel as soon as it can.

Another R-rated comedy followed in third place. The wild party pic 21 and Over debuted with an estimated $9M from 2,771 theaters for a mild $3,248 average. With no stars, but a promise of a raunchy good time, the $13M film played to a young adult audience as 73% of the crowd was under 25. Males and females were evenly split. The Relativity release was flat from Friday to Saturday and earned a B grade from CinemaScore. Reviews were generally weak.

Horror sequel The Last Exorcism Part II from CBS Films opened in fourth to a soft $8M, according to estimates. Averaging $2,974 from 2,700 sites, the PG-13 fright flick came in with less than half of the $20.4M opening of its predecessor from August 2010. That film was hated by audiences earning a D CinemaScore so not much demand was there for a follow-up. But the supernatural series is super cheap to produce so another chapter made sense. Part II fared slightly better with audiences earning a C- grade - the low end of normal for fright flicks.

Dwayne Johnson's action drama Snitch dropped a respectable 42% in its second weekend to an estimated $7.7M. The Lionsgate release has collected $24.4M in ten days and should finish with $40M+. The Weinstein Co. saw its 3D animated entry Escape From Planet Earth hold up well against the opening of Jack. The space toon fell 37% to an estimated $6.7M pushing the total to $43.2M.

Faring well again was the romance pic Safe Haven which slipped 40% to an estimated $6.3M for $57.1M to date for Relativity. Fresh off her Oscar win for Best Actress and week-long flow of publicity, Jennifer Lawrence saw her awards hit Silver Linings Playbook post another terrific hold inching up 3% to an estimated $5.9M in its 16th weekend of release. The Weinstein Co. has banked an impressive $115.5M to date.

Bruce Willis suffered another bad blow to his franchise-stretching action vehicle A Good Day to Die Hard which tumbled 56% in its third round to an estimated $4.5M for $59.6M to date for Fox. Worldwide is $221.9M with 73% from overseas. Rounding out the top ten with an estimated $3.6M was the alien horror pic Dark Skies which dropped 57% in its sophomore session. The ten-day cume is just $13.5M for The Weinstein Co.

The submarine thriller Phantom starring Ed Harris and David Duchovny was dead on arrival posting one of the worst openings ever for a film launching in over 1,000 theaters. The R-rated pic from RCR Distribution grossed an industry estimated $470,000 from 1,118 locations for a disastrous $420 average. That comes out to roughly four tickets sold per showtime all weekend long.

Nicole Kidman's new thriller Stoker from acclaimed Korean director Park Chan-wook enjoyed a solid platform release grossing an estimated $159,000 from only seven theaters for a $22,689 average. That was an impressive performance in such a weak marketplace. Next weekend will see no new markets open, but expansions in existing markets of New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, and Toronto. Reviews were generally good for the filmmaker's English-language debut. Opening day and date in Korea, Stoker debuted to $1.7M there.

Oscar nominee War Witch debuted in two Manhattan houses and opened to an estimated $10,260 for a $5,130 average. That is a sturdy performance for a film already available on VOD and iTunes. The multi-platform release will see Los Angeles opening next week followed by 30 more markets for the theatrical run. Reviews have been exceptionally strong.

The two biggest Academy Award winners parlayed their Oscar statues into extra box office revenue this weekend thanks to extra publicity...and screens. Best Picture champ Argo increased its theater count by 23% and grossed an estimated $2.2M, up 21% from last weekend. Despite being available on home entertainment platforms, the Ben Affleck hit still found takers from those who want to experience it in a movie theater. The Warner Bros. cume climbed to $132.8M.

Winning the most Oscars of any film including Best Director, Life of Pi saw its theater count go up 9% and its weekend tally rise a sturdy 43% to an estimated $2.3M. The Fox smash has now grossed $116.9M domestically and a sensational $593.9M worldwide - 80% from international markets.

Contrary to media reports, there is no normal Oscar bump as every year's winner is in a vastly different situation at that moment in time. Varying greatly are screen expansions, added marketing dollars, video availability, and age of theatrical run. Last year, The Artist boosted its theater count by 82% on the weekend after winning Best Picture and saw its weekend gross climb 25%. A year earlier, The King's Speech had a 6% dip in theaters and a 15% decline in weekend box office. Looking only at a film's percentage change on the weekend after the ceremony does not tell the full story.

The top ten films grossed an estimated $89.5M which was down 39% from last year when The Lorax opened at number one with $70.2M; and down 22% from 2011 when Rango debuted in the top spot with $38.1M.

Jack the Giant Slayer $27.2M
Identity Thief $9.7M
21 And Over $8.8M
Snitch $7.8M
The Last Exorcism Part II $7.7M
Escape From Planet Earth 3D $6.6M
Safe Haven $6.3M
Silver Linings Playbook $5.7M
A Good Day To Die Hard $4.6M
Dark Skies $3.5M

I can say that I did see Jack The Giant Slayer and thought it was interesting to say the least.

 

[Fuji Vice]

Even if Jack the Giant Slayer is amazing, its going to have a hard time making back its $200 million budget.

 

[Postman Dave]

I honestly had no idea of the movies existence until about a week ago. Good job marketing that one folks.

 

[Wang Chung]

I honestly had no idea of the movies existence until about a week ago. Good job marketing that one folks.

I am almost certain I put the preview in the coming attractions section..... I am going to have to check that one out.




I just checked it out and I added it on 01/27/2012. Yeah they didn't market it very well and it was a pretty decent flick too.

 

[Wang Chung]

This weekend, Disney's big-budget Emerald City gamble paid off as the expensive 3D prequel Oz the Great and Powerful opened to sensational results at the North American box office accounting for well over half of all ticket sales thanks to one of the biggest debuts ever seen at this time of year. The PG-rated adventure bowed to a stunning $80.3M, according to estimates, from 3,912 theaters resulting in a spectacular $20,521 average.

It was the third biggest March opening ever trailing last year's The Hunger Games ($152.5M) and the 2010 Johnny Depp mega-smash Alice in Wonderland ($116.1M) and the fourth best during the entire January-to-March corridor. Directed by Sam Raimi, Oz stars James Franco, Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams, and Rachel Weisz and tells the origin story behind the classic story The Wizard of Oz. The production budget is estimated to be at a staggering $215M but the excellent debut now indicates that this will end up as a moneymaker -- quite possibly with over $600M in global box office plus ancillaries.

The Mouse House had its marketing machine working overtime for months to build excitement and the campaign worked. Families were genuinely excited but so were adult women, teens, and young adults so the broad appeal helped fuel a wider turnout. Plus the brand was popular and relevant making for a film that moviegoers would be interested in paying to see.

Oz started out with a stellar $24.1M opening day on Friday which included $2M from Thursday night shows. Saturday saw a solid 37% boost to $33M while Sunday is estimated to decline by 30% to $23.1M. Alice -- another 3D family-oriented adventure released by Disney in early March -- saw more of its mammoth opening weekend haul turn out upfront on Friday with Saturday inching up only 8%. It went on to finish its domestic run with nearly three times its opening figure and more than $1 billion worldwide. However, that film had the starpower of Johnny Depp and was released during the early stages of the 3D boom when movie fans were more eager to pay the higher ticket prices.

2013 has been a mostly disappointing year with very few films scoring big openings or overperforming. Oz more than doubled the year's largest opening to date -- Identity Thief's $34.6M. That comedy is also the top-grossing film of the year but the title will be swiped away by Oz next weekend. The magician and the three witches also grossed more on opening weekend than last year's budget-busting flops John Carter and Battleship made during their entire runs. Even last weekend's Jack the Giant Slayer won't reach a final North American tally close to Oz's great and powerful weekend.

Oz the Great and Powerful also opened day and date in 80% of the international marketplace this weekend and banked an estimated $69.9M from 46 territories making for a massive $150.2M worldwide opening. Some key markets like China and France are still to come later this month. Featuring a very American story and setting, Oz has less global appeal when compared to other recent movie franchises like The Hobbit, Harry Potter, James Bond, Pirates of the Caribbean, or even Wonderland. But 3D visual spectacles do sell and the studio made a conscious effort to tour the stars around the world in recent weeks for red carpet premieres in Tokyo, Moscow, and London to help energize global ticket buyers.

Despite its B+ CinemaScore grade last weekend when it opened, the big-budget fairy tale adventure Jack the Giant Slayer tumbled a disturbing 63% in its sophomore frame to an estimated $10M. Oz certainly took away much of the target audience but overall consumer excitement for the Warner Bros. release was never very strong to begin with. With $43.8M in ten days, Jack should end its domestic run with a disappointing $60-65M. Produced for nearly $200M excluding global marketing costs, the actioner will deliver substantial losses. The comedy hit Identity Thief held up well in its fifth weekend sliding only 35% to an estimated $6.3M giving Universal $116.5M to date.

Another month, another R-rated action film dies on impact. The Colin Farrell revenge pic Dead Man Down debuted poorly in fourth with only $5.4M, according to estimates, for a weak $2,445 average from 2,188 locations. Adult men made up the core crowd as demographic data showed that the audience was 60% male and 75% over 25. Reviews were not very kind and moviegoers had little praise either as the CinemaScore was a lackluster B- for the FilmDistrict release.

Two films tied for fifth place according to estimates with $5.1M a piece. The Lionsgate action title Snitch posted a very good hold easing 34% with $31.9M to date. Relativity's party comedy 21 and Over dropped by a reasonable 42% and has banked $16.8M after ten days. The distributor's romance hit Safe Haven followed with an estimated $3.8M, down 40%, and a cume of $62.9M.

With Oscar heat evaporating, Silver Linings Playbook fell by 35% -- the largest decline yet of its 17-week run. The Weinstein Co. release grossed $3.7M and upped its sum to an impressive $120.7M. The distributor claimed ninth place too with its animated entry Escape From Planet Earth which got hurt by Oz falling 52% to an estimated $3.2M. The 3D toon has collected $47.8M. Rounding out the top ten was the horror sequel The Last Exorcism Part II which crashed by 60% in its second weekend with an estimated $3.1M. Cume for CBS Films is $12.1M.

In the specialty arena, the Tommy Lee Jones film Emperor generated a mild debut with an estimated $1M from 260 locations for a soft $4,012 average for Roadside Attractions. Reviews were somewhat negative. Also in limited release, Michel Gondry's The We and the I debuted with strong results grossing $12,280 from a solo theater in New York ahead of an expansion to other top markets later this month from Paladin and 108 Media.

The top ten films grossed an estimated $126M which was up 9% from last year when The Lorax remained at number one in its second weekend with $38.8M; and up 13% from 2011 when Battle: Los Angeles debuted in the top spot with $35.6M.

Oz the Great and Powerful $79.1M
Jack the Giant Slayer $9.8M
Identity Thief $6.3M
Dead Man Down $5.3M
Snitch $5.1M
21 And Over $5.1M
Safe Haven $3.8M
Silver Linings Playbook $3.6M
Escape From Planet Earth 3D $3.2M
The Last Exorcism Part II $3.2M

Have not seen OZ but I did see Identity Thief and was bored out of my mind at how they tried to make something that serious into a comedy. Jason Bateman was great that stupid chick is annoying as hell, Melissa McCarthy. I mean seriously she seems to have the same personality in every film gross, loud, and completely stupid. I hate it.

 

[Wang Chung]

Moviegoers cared about only one magician as the blockbuster Oz the Great and Powerful easily led the North American box office for a second time while dueling magic men Steve Carell and Jim Carrey saw their new comedy The Incredible Burt Wonderstone get flat out rejected. Meanwhile, the Halle Berry thriller The Call overperformed and enjoyed a solid second place debut.

Disney's big-budget Wizard of Oz prequel Oz was both great and powerful grossing an estimated $42.2M in its sophomore frame to boost the ten-day cume to $145M. The PG-rated witchfest dropped a moderate 47% which was in line with Johnny Depp's 3D fairy tale extravaganza Alice in Wonderland from three years ago which declined by 46% in its second weekend which was also in mid-March. That film amassed $209.3M in its first ten days, or 63% of its eventual $334.2M domestic final. Neither Oz nor Alice had a new competing kidpic open on that sophomore session.

Overseas, Oz hauled in another $46.6M from 55 territories boosting the international total to $136.8M and the global gross to $281.8M. With audiences generally liking the costly $215M-budgeted fantasy film, the current trajectory puts it on course for $230M-240M from North America and over $550M worldwide.

Halle Berry scored a big hit this weekend with her new kidnapping thriller The Call which exceeded expectations and landed in second place with a $17.1M opening, according to estimates. The R-rated film which finds the Oscar-winning actress playing a 911 operator who takes matters into her own hands to capture a serial killer averaged a sturdy $6,821 from 2,507 locations powered by a female audience. Studio data showed that women made up 61% of the crowd while 53% were over 30. Abigail Breslin co-starred.

Reviews were lackluster but moviegoers responded to the marketing push of this crime thriller. Berry has had little luck at the box office in recent years when not starring in a franchise film with built-in audiences. In fact, The Call delivered her third best opening ever for a non-franchise pic trailing only 2001's Swordfish and 2003's Gothika. The B+ CinemaScore indicates that audiences were generally pleased with what the Sony film had to offer so the long-term outlook seems promising. As an action hero, Berry can now say that she beat out openings this year from The Rock, Mark Wahlberg, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, and Colin Farrell.

Barely breaking double digit millions, the all-star comedy The Incredible Burt Wonderstone opened to dismal results in third place with an estimated $10.3M for A-list comic stars Steve Carell and Jim Carrey. The PG-13 flick about an iconic Las Vegas magician threatened by the success of a popular new street performer featured two of the biggest box office names in the world of comedy but failed to excite ticket buyers. Burt averaged a middling $3,261 from 3,160 locations and boasted a cast that also included Steve Buscemi, James Gandolfini, Alan Arkin and Olivia Wilde.

Critics slammed the Warner Bros. release and unfunny trailers and TV spots did little to change people's minds. Over the past decade, Carell has anchored many broad comedy hits while Carrey has done very few spending more time instead on big kidpics and smaller indies. Among wide releases bowing in 2,000+ theaters, Wonderstone was the worst opener ever for Carell and the third lowest for Carrey after the Majestic and Man in the Moon. Studio research showed that Burt skewed 55% male and 56% over 25. CinemaScore audiences gave a disappointing C+ grade indicating a fast fade ahead.

With nothing new for kids, the fairy tale adventure Jack the Giant Slayer held up well in its third round with an estimated $6.2M dipping 37%. The pricey Warner Bros. title has still only collected $53.9M from North America on its way to about $70M. Identity Thief, a hit with a much lower cost and much higher gross, followed in fifth place with an estimated $4.5M. Off just 29%, the Universal smash has grossed a terrific $123.7M to date.

Dwayne Johnson's Snitch has been that rare action movie with good legs slipping 31% in its fourth round to an estimated $3.5M for a $37.3M cume to date for Lionsgate. Relativity's party comedy 21 and Over fell 49% to an estimated $2.6M with $21.9M overall.

Oscar contender Silver Linings Playbook dropped 29% to an estimated $2.6M for The Weinstein Co. lifting the total to a sturdy $124.6M. Its been in the top ten for the past nine weekends. The Relativity romance Safe Haven followed close behind with an estimated $2.5M, off 34%, putting the tearjerker at a solid $67M. Rounding out the top ten was the kidpic Escape From Planet Earth which dipped only 28% to an estimated $2.3M. The total stands at $52.2M for The Weinstein Co.

Making a spectacular splash in platform release was the bikini-clad-girls-with-guns pic Spring Breakers which sold out shows with an estimated $270,000 from only three theaters (2 in New York, 1 in Los Angeles) for a jaw-dropping $90,000 average. Distributed by A24, the R-rated film stars Disney Channel gals Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgens in more sexually provocative roles along with James Franco who this weekend ruled both the mainstream and specialty scenes. Reviews were generally positive and Breakers will expand nationwide this Friday.

The top ten films grossed an estimated $93.9M which was even with last year when 21 Jump Street opened at number one with $36.3M; but off 5% from 2011 when Limitless debuted in the top spot with $18.9M.

Not surprised not a real good threat to OZ this week still want to see Studio Ghibli's Poppy Hill and surprised the WWE film the Call did as well as it did.