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Kids love Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Adults do as well. And that aspect makes me sad. The maturation process should be more effective on a universal scale. But I digress. Because so many children and disappointing adults enjoy the adventures of the reptilian warriors, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles once again finished in first place yesterday. Its reign will probably extend through Thursday, but that statement is not guaranteed.

As was the case with every other film in the top ten, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles increased from Monday to Tuesday. After starting with $6.7 million Monday, the action flick increased 13% to $7.6 million yesterday. To further reflect the strength of Tuesday as the king of weekday box office, I will add that 13% represents the smallest increase within yesterday’s top ten.

TMNT has now grossed $79.8 million after five days. The $125 million production has also tallied almost $30 million overseas. Despite the hostile early buzz, it is a mortal lock to be a profitable venture for Paramount Pictures. The only remaining question regarding today and tomorrow is whether the upstart new release, Let’s Be Cops, can unseat it for first place. The debuting comedy grossed $1.2 million during Tuesday sneaks. The quality of that total lies in the eye of the beholder. I am of the opinion that it’s solid for any film; it is especially good for a title with a $17 million budget. Let’s Be Cops could be profitable by the end of the week.

Second place once again went to Guardians of the Galaxy, the Disney movie that has finished in the top two during all dozen days of release thus far. That track record will also be challenged by Let’s Be Cops tomorrow and then The Expendables 3 on Friday. On Tuesday, Guardians grossed $6.6 million, an improvement of 24% from Monday’s $5.3 million. It has now earned $188.5 million domestically, and it will join the $200 million club on Friday.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will be either the eighth or ninth film to do so, as Dawn of the Planet of the Apes currently sits at $199 million. The “all is forgiven for that Tim Burton disaster” flick should pass $200 million on Thursday, but there is an outside chance it needs until Friday to get there. By that point, Guardians will have passed it and never look back.

The other three openers from last weekend all spiked at least 21% yesterday. That “lowest” increase was claimed by Into the Storm, which earned $2.1 million for a grand total of $21.1 million. The Hundred-Foot Journey, a strong performer on Monday, possessed the second best Tuesday increase within the top 10. A 35% increase for a $1.7 million performance gives the Helen Mirren film a total of $12.2 million for the $22 million production.

Yesterday, total combined revenue for the top ten was $23.2 million. That total is a 22% increase from Monday’s $19 million. You should note two aspects to this total. The first is that the top two films claimed $14.2 million of that $23.2 million. The second is that $23.2 million is one of the strongest totals of the 10 weeks we have evaluated this summer. The problem facing the box office earlier this summer was the lack of depth in combination with the lack of heavyweights at the top of the charts. Oddly, both of those issues are better in mid-August than they were in June or July. Finally, the number is actually better because the $1.2 million garnered by Let’s Be Cops will not be included until tomorrow’s column.

Daily Box Office for August 12, 2014
Rank	Film	Distributor	Gross	Total Gross
1	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles	Paramount	7,570,117	79,815,360
2	Guardians of the Galaxy	Walt Disney	6,609,534	188,469,200
3	Into the Storm	Warner Bros.	2,059,385	21,106,989
4	The Hundred-Foot Journey	Walt Disney	1,717,447	13,966,322
5	Lucy	Universal	1,512,050	100,250,990
6	Step Up All In	Lionsgate	907,651	8,057,369
7	Hercules	Paramount	830,765	65,000,943
8	Dawn of the Planet of the Apes	20th Century Fox	732,003	199,051,045
9	Get on Up	Universal	628,390	24,280,115
10	Planes: Fire and Rescue	Walt Disney	583,207	53,959,050