By Katey Rich
Even after what I wrote on Friday about how Will Smith is a real deal movie star, I was surprised at how many moviegoers agreed with me. I Am Legend absolutely destroyed the box office, raking in $77 million in the best-ever December opening (yes, even better than all three Lord of the Rings movies). The movie is already among the top-grossing films to be released this fall, and is likely on its way to being one of the top grossers of the year.
It wasn't the only surprise earner of the weekend, though. The critically reviled Alvin and the Chipmunks scored in second place with a $44 million take, just short of what Enchanted made in its blockbuster opening week a few weeks ago. This will probably go down as one of those examples of how critics don't matter and our opinions won't stop anyone from shelling out to see garbage. We tried to warn you, America, we really did.
Since it's already Tuesday (I apologize for the absence yesterday), everyone's already looking to next weekend's grosses, so I'll direct you to Box Office Mojo, as usual, for the full results. Take a look at The Kite Runner, which debuted OK in limited release, and Atonement and Juno, which are still swingin' in a handful of theatres. Atonement even managed to crack the top ten, with Juno hovering just outside. The top ten is also after the jump; hey look, people are still seeing Fred Claus instead of just renting Elf.
| TW | LW | Title (click to view) | Studio | Weekend Gross | % Change | Theater Count / Change | Average | Total Gross | Budget* | Week # | |
| 1 | N | I Am Legend | WB | $77,211,321 | - | 3,606 | - | $21,411 | $77,211,321 | - | 1 |
| 2 | N | Alvin and the Chipmunks | Fox | $44,307,417 | - | 3,475 | - | $12,750 | $44,307,417 | $60 | 1 |
| 3 | 1 | The Golden Compass | NL | $8,825,549 | -65.8% | 3,528 | - | $2,501 | $40,768,661 | $180 | 2 |
| 4 | 2 | Enchanted | BV | $5,533,884 | -48.3% | 3,066 | -454 | $1,804 | $91,801,187 | - | 4 |
| 5 | 6 | No Country for Old Men | Mira. | $2,827,530 | -31.3% | 1,348 | +24 | $2,097 | $33,390,003 | - | 6 |
| 6 | N | The Perfect Holiday | YFG | $2,283,360 | - | 1,307 | - | $1,747 | $2,930,188 | - | 1 |
| 7 | 3 | This Christmas | SGem | $2,260,812 | -54.4% | 1,921 | +42 | $1,176 | $46,004,292 | $13 | 4 |
| 8 | 4 | Fred Claus | WB | $2,221,438 | -51.8% | 2,750 | -435 | $807 | $68,880,722 | - | 6 |
| 9 | 15 | Atonement | Focus | $1,806,862 | +130.4% | 117 | +85 | $15,443 | $2,918,154 | - | 2 |
| 10 | 7 | August Rush | WB | $1,765,319 | -49.7% | 2,007 | -303 | $879 | $28,045,110 | - | 4 |
No comments:
Post a Comment