Weekend Box Office Results - Page 9

Two R-rated horror flicks battled it out against last week's champ Inglourious Basterds for the top spot this weekend, with the 3D thriller The Final Destination easily beating out all other competitors with a strong $28.3 million debut. It was the third straight weekend (and fourth in five weeks) that an R-rated pic topped the charts, following Basterds and District 9.  Quentin Tarantino's Basterds slipped a better than expected 47% to $20 million, while Rob Zombie's Halloween II finished in third with a $17.3 million bow. Focus Features' comedy Taking Woodstock opened a distant ninth with $3.7 million.

Thanks to a massive ad campaign and the promise of in-your-face 3D horror thrills, audiences came out in big numbers for Warner's horror sequel The Final Destination. Budgeted at a modest $40 million, the 3-D pic took in a strong $28.3 million, averaging $9,079 in a wide 3,121 theaters. Offering the 3-D version of the film in over half of its theaters (approximately 1,700), the film's increased margins helped it post by far the biggest opening in the Final Destination franchises history, blowing by previous best Final Destination 3, which took in $19.2 million in February 2006.

Dropping 47% to second place was Quentin Tarantino's WWII pic Inglourious Basterds, taking in another strong $20 million this weekend.  That brought its ten day cume to an impressive $73.8 million. Buoyed by excellent reviews and good word of mouth, the $70 million budgeted gore fest is on pace to blow past $100 million. Internationally, the Weinstein Co. produced actioner took in $19.4 million, bringing its overseas cume to $59.1 million.  Universal owns the film's international rights, while the Weinstein Co. is handling domestic distribution.

Debuting in third was another Weinstein Co. film, the horror sequel Halloween II with $17.4 million. Despite the big competition in front of it, the Rob Zombie-directed pic averaged a solid $5,754 in 3,025 theaters. The debut fell well short of its 2007 predecessor Halloween, which took in $26.4 million in its debut. Reviews were poor to say the least.

Sony's acclaimed sci-fi pic District 9 slipped just 41% to fourth with $10.7 million. In just 17 days the $30 million budgeted film has grossed $90.8 million, and should have no problems surpassing $100 million by next weekend. Directed by newcomer Neil Blomkamp and starring a cast of unknowns, District 9 should go down as one of the most pleasant surprises of the summer season.

For the second week in a row a newcomer blew past industry expectations to claim the top spot at the box office.  This week it went to Quentin Tarantino and Co., as their eclectic and gory WWII pic Inglourious Basterds dominated the weekend with a whopping $37.6 million. Last week's champ District 9 slipped to second with a solid $18.9 million showing. Two other newcomers, Shorts and Post Grad finished a distant sixth and tenth place respectively.

Thanks to some huge buzz, good reviews, Brad Pitt's hefty nameplate, and a rather controversial take on the World War II genre, Quentin Taratino's Inglourious Basterds lead all film with an impressive $37.6 million debut, far beyond industry expectations in the mid-$20m range. Budgeted at $70 million, the big opening likely postponed financial ruin for the struggling Weinstein Co. for another day. Universal co-produced the film.

Averaging a huge $11,880 in 3,165 theaters, Basterds easily became director Tarantino's biggest debut ever, besting 2004's Kill Bill Vol. 2 with $25.1 million. The well-reviewed R-rated pic scored a "fresh" 87% recommendation rating from critics polled by Rottentomatoes.com, but a 10% drop from Friday to Saturday might mean larger drops in the next few weekends. Internationally,  Inglourious Basterds opened in 22 markets for a $27.5 million bow, pushing its global take to $65.1 million this weekend.

Falling a better-than-expected 49% to second was the sci-fi sleeper hit District 9, which finished with $18.9 million this weekend.  In ten days the $30 million budgeted Sony pic has amassed a hugely profitable $73.5 million, and looks on pace to blow past $100 million domestic. Word of mouth appears stronger than normal for a sci-fi pic of its nature, considering last year's Cloverfield saw a huge 68% drop in its sophomore frame. Despite opening slightly larger than District 9, that film finished its domestic run at $80 million.

G.I. Joe claimed the third spot with $12.5 million, dropping just 44% this weekend.  In three weeks the $175m budgeted Paramount release has grossed $120.5 million, and a $150 million domestic take seems likely.

Robert Rodriguez's latest foray in the childrens genre was a dud, as Warner's Shorts managed just $6.6 million in sixth place. Averaging just $2,126 from a wide 3,105 theaters, the kidpic fell well short of 2003's Spy Kids 3D: Game Over with $33 million, and even 2005's The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3D with $12.5 million.

Fox's Post Grad was DOA, debuting with $2.8m in  1,959 theaters, averaging a meek  $1,429. Starring Gilmore Girls' Alexis Bledel, the film was slaughtered by critics. Even worse was X Games 3D: The Movie, which managed just $800,000 in  1,399 theaters for a pathetic $572 average. The Buena Vista release opened at No. 19 this weekend.

Thanks to a better-than-expected debut from Basterds, as well as some strong holdover performances, the top ten films grossed an estimated $108 million, up 31% from last year's comparable frame when Tropic Thunder stayed on top with $16.3 million.

Opponents of Sony's low-budget sci-fi actioner failed to keep the aliens out, as the $30 million Peter Jackson produced pic dominated the box office with a much better-than-expected $37 million weekend. The debut sent last week's champ G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra tumbling 59% to second with $22.5 million, while Warner's time-bending romance The Time Traveler's Wife finished strong in third with $19.2 million.

Critics went gaga over the directorial debut of South African filmmaker and Peter Jackson protege Neill Blomkamp, whose sci-fi pic blew past industry expectations with a $37 million debut. Thanks to an intriguing viral advertising campaign, stellar reviews and great buzz coming out of this year's Comic-Con convention, the modestly budgeted $30 million alien-encounters pic overcame having a cast of complete unknowns and a very unusual storyline. Averaging a stellar $12,135 in 3,049 theaters, the R-rated pic skewed heavily male and Under 25, dominating the core audience that propelled G.I. Joe's opening weekend.

Compared with last year's  Cloverfield, a similarly unconventional sci-fi release that thrived off its unusual premise, no stars, low budget, and pseudo-documentary style visuals, District 9 fell a bit short of that $40.1 million opening. The film tailed off quickly and finished its domestic run with $80 million. But if word of mouth turns out to be strong for District 9, look for the film to best that number.

Thanks to the arrival of District 9, last week's champ G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra fell a steep 59% to $22.5 million, bringing its ten day haul to $98.8 million.  Budgeted at a hefty $175 million, the Paramount/Hasbro release will most likely fall short of its budget by the end of its domestic run.

Warner's counter-programming play succeeded for third as their romance The Time Traveler's Wife opened with $19.2 million.  Averaging $6,427 in  2,988 theaters, the Rachel McAdams-Eric Bana flick shrugged off poor reviews and saw a 17% drop in sales from Friday to Saturday, indicate lukewarm word of mouth.

Conversely, Meryl Streep's Julie & Julia fell just 38% to $12.4 million in fourth. Budgeted at just $38 million, the Sony release has grossed $43.7 million in ten days.

Debuting poorly in sixth was the R-rated  comedy The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, which took in $5.4 million in 1,838 theaters for a $2,911 average. Starring Entourage's Jeremy Piven, the film was slaughtered by critics.

Debuting in ninth with much fanfare from critics but not much love from audiences was Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki's latest film Ponyo, which took in just $3.5 million in 927 theaters. Averaging a modest $3,782 per theater, the film is just the latest in a line of critically-acclaimed and internationally popular Miyazaki releases that failed to find an audience in the U.S.

Thanks to a better-than-expected debut from District 9, the top ten films grossed an estimated $119.5 million, up 12% from last year's comparable frame when Tropic Thunder topped with $25.8 million.