Top 10 for May 26-29, 2006 Summary: Final numbers are in.
Mutant mania attacked theaters this Memorial Day weekend, as Fox's mega-budgeted superhero sequel X-Men: The Last Stand posted a record-breaking opening weekend of $122.8 million, obliterating previous record-holder The Lost World: Jurassic Park which took in $92.7 million over the four-day weekend in 1997. Debuting in an ultrawide 3,690 theaters, the $210 million budgeted third installment -- this time directed by Brett Ratner (Rush Hour) -- averaged a staggering $32,554 per theater.
Based on the Marvel comic series, the film franchise has taken massive financial leaps forward in both budget and grosses in subsequent films. The original Bryan Singer-helmed X-Men ($75m budget) debuted with $54.5 million, on its way to $157.3 million domestically. X2: X-Men United ($110m budget) drew in a record $85.6 million opening, finishing with $214.9 million domestically. Budgeted anywhere between $165-210 million, the latest X-Men incarnation is widely thought to be the last stand indeed, with Fox apparently unable to continue keeping up with the film's spiraling budget demands (more mutants means more effects, which means bigger budgets).
Despite lukewarm reviews (just a 55% recommendation rating from critics polled by Rottentomatoes.com), fans flocked to the film early, amassing a record $45.5 million on Friday alone, the second-biggest single day in history behind only Episode III's $50 million opening day salvo. Over the Friday-Sunday period (including Thursday midnight screenings), the film brought in $103.1 million, making it the fourth largest three-day opening in history, behind only Spider-Man ($114m), Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith ($108.4) and Shrek 2 ($108m), and ahead of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire ($102.6m). There wasn't much that didn't go Fox's way this weekend, although a troubling 29% drop in ticket sales from Friday-to-Saturday could spell trouble for the film's longevity. Despite their critical acclaim, neither the first or second X-Men showed strong legs at the box office, with the opening weekend accounting for 34% and 39% of the entire domestic gross for the films respectively. Assuming word of mouth is slightly worse on X3, the film could still wind up with a monstrous $245 domestically, along with a massive international haul.
Falling 56% to $34 million over the three-day weekend and $42.4 million over the four-day frame, Sony's global juggernaut The Da Vinci Code finished second, pushing its two week total to a massive $145.4 million domestically and over $320 million overseas. That gives the Ron Howard film a staggering $465 million worldwide take in just eleven days. Budgeted at $125 million, Sony's tentpole summer pic could very well be the summer phenomenon to beat when final numbers are tallied.
Holding well in third was DreamWorks Animations' well-reviewed computer animated film Over the Hedge, which slipped just 30% from last weekend to $26.8 million, and $35.3 million over the four-day frame. That pushes the film's eleven-day take to a healthy $84.4 million. Though it faces a massive challenger in Pixar's eager-awaited Cars on June 9th, look for the family comedy to finish domestically with $160 million.
May's earliest big-budget competitors Mission: Impossible III and Poseidon both held strong in rounding out the top five, finishing with $8.5 million and $7 million respectively. For the $150m budgeted MI: III, its four-week cume now stands at $115.8 million. The film should just barely break even domestically, and could surpass $400 million worldwide by the end of its run. Budgeted at $160 million, Warner's Poseidon is in choppier waters, as the film's three-week cume now stands at just $46.6 million. Look for the film to finish domestically with a disappointing $65 million.
In the world of limited release, the critically-acclaimed global warming documentary An Inconvenient Truth, starring former next President of the United States Al Gore, warmed up indie movie houses pulling in $366,000 in just four theaters for a sizzling $91,447 per theater. The film expands to 60 additional theaters this Friday, and will continue to expand throughout June.
Thanks to the marvelous X-Men debut, the top ten films grossed an estimated $226.8 million over the four-day weekend, up 1% from last year's comparable frame when Star Wars Episode III held onto the top spot with $70 million.
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