Box Office: New Moon Fall Down But Still Stay No1; Blind Side So Close
11/30/2009 11:10:00 AM
kenmouse
, Posted in
Okay, so what should we call them: B.S.-ers? Side-dishes? Bli-hards?Devotees of The Blind Side are deserving of their own Twi-hard-esque nickname after the Sandra Bullock football drama gave New Moon a run for the holiday box office, and, in rare fashion, grossed more money in its second weekend than its first.
Blind Side's Friday-Sunday take was estimated at $40.1 million. New Moon held off Team Bullock, and stayed No. 1 with $42.5 million.
The race between the two movies was tight for one statistical reason: The Blind Side surged, with business up nearly 20 percent; New Moon cooled, with ticket sales plunging 70 percent.
What happened to New Moon? What's up with The Blind Side? And is the world ready for a grown-up Zac Efron? Let's find out:
• Plain and simple, New Moon fanatacism is not an unlimited resource. Twi-hards, who made the movie far bigger than expected last weekend, were tapped out this weekend. Relatively speaking.
• Of the five fastest movies to hit $200 million, of which New Moon, at $230.7 million and counting, is one, the Twilight sequel by far suffered the steepest second-weekend fall. The 70 percent drop was more Mallrats than Dark Knight or even Twilight (down 62 percent).
• It's worth noting that of the five fastest movies to hit $200 millon, New Moon is the only one that didn't cost at least $200 million. Or $150 million. Or $100 million. Or even $75 million.
• After two weekends, the $50 million wonder has made $473.7 million worldwide, its studio reported, so, no, ultimately not any sleep being lost in New Moon-land over Sandra Bullock.
• Residents of New Moon-land, however, would be excused for hearing Sandra Bullock's footsteps. The star's movie nearly matched its prized property at every turn over the long Thanksgiving holiday. From Wednesday-Sunday, New Moon grossed $66 million; The Blind Side was right there with $64.2 million.
• Not only did The Blind Side get bigger in its second weekend, its audience got younger, too. "The movie has taken on a life of its own," Warner Bros. exec Dan Fellman said today.
• After two weekends, The Blind Side, produced for only $29 million, has grossed an estimated $100.3 million domestically.
• The slicked-down Zac Efron played well on the art-house circuit, with Me and Orson Welles grossing $64,780 at four theaters. Penélope Cruz's Broken Embraces was even bigger ($117,005 at two theaters).
• Debuting at two theaters, Disney's old-school animated The Princess and the Frog was a phenom, with a $712,000 Friday-Sunday take. Since opening Wednesday, the film has made $1.1 million.
• John Travolta's Old Dogs ($16.8 million Friday-Sunday; $24.1 million Wednesday-Sunday) wasn't a dog, but it wasn't Wild Hogs, either.
• Thanksgiving was kind to Jim Carrey's A Christmas Carol ($16 million Friday-Sunday; $22.5 million Wednesday-Sunday), which was up 30 percent from last weekend.
• After breaking wide, Fantastic Mr. Fox ($7 million Friday-Sunday; $9.5 million Wednesday-Sunday) broke into the Top 10.
• The debuting The Road ($1.5 million Friday-Sunday; $2 million Wednesday-Sunday—at 111 theaters) did well for a flick that skips the exciting apocalypse, a la 2012, and goes straight to the depressing aftermath.
• Vince Vaughn's sturdy Couples Retreat exited the Top 10 after a seven-weekend stay, and a $106.7 million gross.
• Michael Jackson's This Is It took in $800,000 in its final weekend in theaters, and pushed its concert-movie record to $71.8 million.
Here's a look at the weekend's top-grossing films based on Friday-Sunday estimates as compiled by Exhibitor Relations:
1. The Twilight Saga: New Moon, $42.5 million
2. The Blind Side, $40.1 million
3. 2012, $18 million
4. Old Dogs, $16.8 million
5. Disney's A Christmas Carol, $16 million
6. Ninja Assassin, $13.1 million
7. Planet 51, $10.2 million
8. Precious, $7.1 million
9. Fantastic Mr. Fox, $7 million
10. The Men Who Stare at Goats, $1.5 million
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