Weekend Wrap-Up
Avatar Repels Revolt, Daybreakers
By John Hamann
January 10, 2010
For an R-rated vampire flick, not only is the opening solid, the reviews were remarkably strong as well. At RottenTomatoes, 86 reviews were counted, and 55 were fresh, giving Daybreakers a 64% fresh rating. For Lionsgate, this is another strong horror title for the studio, joining the Saw franchise and films like The Haunting in Connecticut ($23 million opening) and My Bloody Valentine ($21.2 million opening). Daybreakers ends up as solid January opener for Lionsgate, but will likely struggle next weekend against The Book of Eli.
It's Complicated moves down to fifth this weekend, but enjoys a smaller plunge than Sherlock or Alvin. The Meryl Streep comedy took in another $11 million, dropping 41% compared to last weekend. Now in its third weekend, It's Complicated has taken in a remarkable $76.4 million for Universal, but that's still less than its $85 million production budget.
Finishing sixth is our next opener, this time Amy Adams in Leap Year. I felt like this one was undersold and marketed poorly, but I obviously wasn't the target, as Leap Year opened with a respectable $9.2 million from 2,511 venues. Considering that It's Complicated and The Blind Side are still going strong, I think Universal held back somewhat on the marketing for this one, especially when reviews started to roll in. Leap Year was a horrid 16% fresh at RottenTomatoes, so I think Universal has to be happy with a gross above $8 million. Leap Year was a $19 million pick up for the studio, so Leap Year will end up as another forgettable romantic comedy instead of a financial disaster.
Despite dropping two spots to seventh, The Blind Side still had a solid weekend, which is its eighth frame. The Sandra Bullock starrer earned another $7.8 million and was down a not bad 35% compared to last weekend. The $30 million feature has now earned $219.2 million, and while a longshot for $250 million, it could just do it. The Blind Side has now earned more than seven times its production budget domestically - if Avatar earned seven times its production budget domestically, it would have to take in $1.6 billion.
Finishing eighth is Up in the Air, and also had a solid weekend, despite its rank in the top ten (it was another very busy weekend). The George Clooney flick earned another $7.1 million and was off 34% compared to last weekend. The Golden Globes get handed out on January 17th and Up in the Air could do quite well. This $25 million film has already earned $54.7 million, and has the opportunity to earn a whole bunch more.
Youth in Revolt finishes ninth this weekend. Never looking to dominate the box office, this Michael Cera flick earned a respectable $7 million this weekend from only 1,873 venues. It had a so-so average of $3,737. Made by the Weinsteins for $18 million, Youth in Revolt isn't going to save the losses incurred by Nine at the studio, but it will be a solid title considering the budget.
In tenth is The Princess and the Frog, as the Disney flick enjoys its last weekend in the top ten. The Disney animated flick earned $4.7 million in its sixth weekend, and was off a nasty 52% from the previous frame. The 2-D experiment now has a running total of $92.6 million.
Overall, it was another strong weekend at the box office thanks to Avatar. A year ago over the January 9-11, 2009 frame, the top 12 films at the box office earned $128.2 million on the strength of Gran Torino's first wide weekend when it earned $29.5 million. This year, the top 12 films earned a mighty $146.6 million, the highest total ever for the first two weekends of January. Next weekend brings the first potential blockbuster of 2010 in the form of The Book of Eli with Denzel Washington.
1 |
Avatar |
20th Century Fox |
$48,500,000 |
$50,306,217 |
- 26.6% |
$430,846,514 |
2 |
Sherlock Holmes |
Warner Bros. Pictures |
$16,610,000 |
$16,585,327 |
- 54.7% |
$165,153,093 |
3 |
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel |
20th Century Fox |
$16,300,000 |
$16,566,489 |
- 52.9% |
$178,451,165 |
4 |
Daybreakers |
Lionsgate |
$15,000,000 |
$15,146,692 |
New |
$15,146,692 |
5 |
It's Complicated |
Universal |
$11,007,375 |
$11,007,875 |
- 41.5% |
$76,370,540 |
6 |
Leap Year |
Universal Pictures |
$9,165,150 |
$9,202,815 |
New |
$9,202,815 |
7 |
The Blind Side |
Twentieth Century Fox |
$7,750,000 |
$7,531,467 |
- 36.8% |
$218,978,376 |
8 |
Up in the Air |
Paramount |
$7,100,000 |
$7,159,294 |
- 33.2% |
$54,801,035 |
9 |
Youth in Revolt |
The Weinstein Company |
$7,000,000 |
$6,888,334 |
New |
$6,888,334 |
10 |
The Princess and the Frog |
Walt Disney Pictures |
$4,743,000 |
$4,651,156 |
- 52.7% |
$92,546,727 |
11 |
The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus |
Sony Classics |
$1,706,507 |
$1,762,637 |
New |
$2,989,290 |
12 |
Invictus |
Warner Bros. Pictures |
$1,715,000 |
$1,722,246 |
- 55.9% |
$33,506,889 |
|
Also Opening/Notables |
|
Crazy on the Outside |
Freestyle Releasing |
$75,450 |
$64,438 |
New |
$64,438 |
|
Bitch Slap |
Freestyle |
$15,000 |
$12,254 |
New |
$12,254 |
|
Wonderful World |
Magnolia Pictures |
N/A |
$4,582 |
New |
$4,582 |
|
The White Ribbon |
Sony Classics |
$50,477 |
$48,374 |
New |
$168,533 |
|
Nine |
The Weinstein Company |
$1,618,000 |
$1,614,900 |
- 58.6% |
$16,837,027 |
|
Did You Hear About the Morgans |
Columbia Pictures |
$1,600,000 |
$1,546,172 |
- 68.7% |
$28,346,423 |
|
The Young Victoria |
|
$1,097,660 |
$1,180,595 |
+ 32.4% |
$4,588,617 |
|
CRAZY HEART |
FOX SEARCHLIGHT |
$435,000 |
$462,126 |
New |
$1,246,747 |
|
A Single Man |
The Weinstein Company |
$358,000 |
$359,845 |
- 26.1% |
$2,286,364 |
|
The Lovely Bones |
DreamWorks |
$35,000 |
$38,572 |
- 40.4% |
$448,080 |
|
The Twilight Saga: New Moon |
Summit Entertainment |
$1,688,000 |
$1,703,809 |
- 50.5% |
$290,743,279 |
Click here for all weekend data
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Box office data supplied by Exhibitor Relations
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