Going into the weekend, most predictions had After Earth opening above $30 million, and Now You See Me languishing in the teen-million range. But the predictions were wrong. Now You See Me exceeded expectations, landing in second place with a $28 million opening. After Earth underperformed with just $27 million over the weekend. The fact that Now You See Me wasn't a tentpole worked in its favor, as the feature drew younger audiences (52% under 30) who liked the idea of a light, magic-driven heist movie. The casting of popular star Morgan Freeman also contributed to the bottom line. In contrast, After Earth suffered from poor reviews and a tepid "B" CinemaScore. The original sci-fi concept also didn't entice audiences the way other pre-sold Will Smith and Jaden Smith properties, like MIB 3 and The Karate Kid, did.
Bollywood movies often debut in the top twenty, but it's rare for a feature to open in the top ten. But that was the case for Yei Jawaani Hai Deewani, which landed in ninth place with $1.6 million, posting a $10,000 per-screen average. The romantic coming-of-age story stars Ranbir Kapoor, the fourth generation of an action family who have been dubbed "Bollywood royalty."
Eco-thriller The East debuted with the highest per-screen average of the week, earning $18,900 in each of its four locations. Fellow indie The Kings of Summer was right behind, averaging $14,500 per screen in its four-screen opening weekend. Before Midnight had an excellent second weekend as it expanded from five to 31 locations. The travelogue romance averaged $13,000 per screen and earned $431,000. With $800,000 in total, the Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy starrer should pass $1 million by week three.
This Friday, Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson sign up for The Internship with Google, and those in search of scares can check out the speculative thriller The Purge.
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