'Wimpy Kid' makes a mighty showing at the box office

By Sarah Sluis

In a bit of an upset, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules hurdled into first place this weekend after strong showings on Saturday and Sunday. Male-skewing Sucker Punch started out earning $8 million on Friday to Wimpy Kid's $7.3 million. The matinee family crowds on Saturday and Sunday, however, put Wimpy Kid firmly in first. On Saturday, the kid-oriented sequel earned $10.1 million to the visually packed action film's $6.7 million. Wimpy Kid ended up grossing $24.4 million to Sucker Punch's $19 million.

Adult-oriented fare did particularly well this weekend, essentially without new competition. Limitless dipped just 19.5% in its second week to $15.2 million. The Lincoln Lawyer fell 16.7% to $11 million. Lower down in the top ten, The Adjustment Bureau posted the third-lowest drop, slipping 26.5% to $4.2 million.

The big loser in the top ten was Mars Needs Moms, which plummeted 58% to $2.1 million due to competition from Wimpy Kid.

The Palestinian drama Miral premiered with a $17,000 per-screen average, followed by the more modest $12,000 average of French comedy Potiche. Jumping from 5 to 23 theatres, Win Win soared 213% and posted a $20,000 per-screen average, a strong achievement. Jane Eyre, expanding into 90 theatres from 26, averaged $10,900 per screen.

This Friday will be busy. Four weeks in advance of Easter, the holiday's mascot bunny gets its own live-action/animated venue with Hop. Horror fans can rejoice with Insidious, Source Code will satisfy action fans, and an F-word free version of The King's Speech (rated PG-13) hits theatres.