Weekend Wrap-Up: Immortals Avoid a Quick Death
November 14, 2011
We finally had some good news, as there was a surprise hit at the box office. Immortals opened with substantially more than expected, while the rest of the top five at least came within $500,000 of weekend predictions. This led to an increase from last weekend of 20% to $136 million, while compared to last year, the box office was 12% higher. There is still some bad news. For instance, 2011 is still behind 2010's pace by about 4% at $8.83 billion to $9.19 billion. Also, in order to catch up, we need to maintain year-over-year gains that are about twice as high as they were this weekend. I don't see that happening.
Immortals was the surprise winner at the box office opening with $32.21 million over the weekend, which is $10 million more than predicted. The film's reviews were weak, but no weaker than expected. Most critics were complaining that the film was entirely style over substance. On the other hand, some critics were saying the film's style was its substance. Moviegoers tended to agree with the latter, at least on Friday. The film made nearly $15 million on Friday alone and barely made more than that the rest of the weekend. This could be an omen for short legs going forward. That said, unless it costs a lot to advertise, it should break even during its initial run on the home market.
Jack and Jill yet again proved Adam Sandler's fans simply don't care what critics have to say. The film earned just 3% positive reviews, yet earned second place with $25.00 million and, given Adam Sandler's track record, getting to $100 million should be relatively easy.
Puss in Boots reached $100 million over the weekend, after adding $24.73 million over the past three days, for a total of $108.04 million after three weeks. At this point, $150 million is likely, especially if it gets a bit of a boost from the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.
Tower Heist matched expectations, more or less, earning $12.77 million over the weekend for a total of $43.47 million after two. The film was a very expensive movie to make, especially for the genre, so it will need help internationally to break even.
J. Edgar won't be earning Clint Eastwood another Oscar, but at least it didn't crash and burn at the box office. It managed fifth place with $11.22 million in 1,910 theaters over the weekend for a total opening of $11.32 million. Its per theater average was good, but with reviews that are just 41% positive, I don't think it will expand significantly.
A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas was the only member of the sophomore class to not reach the top five. It placed sixth with $5.92 million over the weekend for a total of $23.24 million after two. The film fell 54% and will likely see its theater count fall quite quickly. However, it was always destined to be a bigger hit on the home market.
One last note, Paranormal Activity 3 reached $100 million on Saturday, becoming the 25th film to reach that milestone. The record is 32 set in 2009 and with eight films with at least a 50% chance at reaching that milestone, we could see that record fall.
Filed under: Weekend Estimates, Puss in Boots, Immortals, Jack and Jill, J. Edgar, A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas, Tower Heist, Paranormal Activity 3