Puss in Boots faced off against a nasty Nor’easter snowstorm at the North American box office this weekend, and managed to come out ahead of the competition despite falling below studio expectations. The 3D animated adventure beat out the Justin Timberlake sci-fi flick In Time and Johnny Depp’s The Rum Diary, both of which opened soft and were also affected by the weather. After factoring in Halloween parties, the box office found itself off 14% from last weekend’s top ten, but up 7.5% from the same period last year.
Despite a disappointing box office performance from the fourth and final Shrek feature, Shrek Forever After, Dreamworks and Paramount continued the franchise by creating a spin-off of one of the most beloved supporting characters, the sword-wielding feline Puss in Boots (voiced by Antonio Banderas). Adding the once-reliable money generator 3D into the mix, Puss in Boots landed on 3,952 theaters this weekend and generated an estimated $34 million in sales for a solid per-screen average of $8,603.
The caveat to Puss in Boots’ opening tally is it debuted over Halloween weekend, which is hardly the best time to open a non-horror film (Paramount originally planned on opening the movie November 4). It also had to contend with the weather, which cut down on the crucial Saturday matinee business across the northeast. With a solid 81% approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and encouraging word-of-mouth from viewers, Puss should be able to purr up sizable business over the next few weekends prior to the Thanksgiving holiday.
Paramount also took hold of the number two spot with its horror entry Paranormal Activity 3. Following a record opening, the movie took a sharp 65% dive in its second round, the result of up-front attendance by fans of the franchise. Halloween parties and activities, along with Mother Nature, no doubt helped fuel the drop.
Paranormal Activity 3 should have a very nice spike on Monday night however. For the weekend, it earned an estimated $18.5 million to bring its ten-day total to $81.5 million, and has a good shot at surpassing the $107 million earned by the 2009 original by the end of its run.
In third place with $12 million was the second opener of the weekend, the sci-fi flick In Time starring Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried. Written and directed by Andrew Niccol (Gattica), In Time takes place in a futuristic society where people live on borrowed time, literally. Critics didn’t care much for it, giving it a weak 36% approval on Rotten Tomatoes, and audiences didn’t seem to be too jazzed by what they saw either by bestowing it with an iffy ‘B-‘ on CinemaScore.
In fourth place for the weekend was Paramount’s remake of Footloose, which lost 47% of its audience in its third round. The film earned an estimated $5.4 million to bring its total to the $39 million mark. It is still on track to finish between $45-50 million before dancing off to home video.
After starring in a fourth Pirates of the Caribbean and earning Disney a billion dollars in ticket sales, Johnny Depp returned to his low budget, esoteric roots with the adult comedy The Rum Diary. Based on the debut novel by the late Hunter S. Thompson (whom Depp played in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas 13 years ago), The Rum Dairy tells the tale of a New York journalist (Depp) who leaves the Big Apple to work for a newspaper in Puerto Rico. Critics were divided right down the line on Rum by bestowing it with a 50% approval on RT. Judging by the meager $5 million taken from the 2,272 theaters showing the movie, it appears that audiences prefer to see Depp playing a drunken pirate more than they do a drunken journalist.
The weekend’s other opener, Sony’s Shakespeare mystery Anonymous, eeked out a tepid $1 million from 265 theaters. Originally scheduled for a wide release this past Friday on 2,500 screens, Sony drastically reduced the screen count when box office forecasts were pointing to a very weak opening for the latest movie from Roland Emmerich (2012, Independence Day). Considering the miniscule numbers gained from its limited run, they were smart to do so.
With Puss in Boots arriving on the scene, Disney/Dreamworks’ Real Steel lost altitude with family audiences by dropping 57% from last weekend to an estimated $4.7 million, and a new domestic total of $74 million. The film is now looking at a final total of $85-90 million. Overseas, Real Steel has earned an estimated $60 million thus far and should surpass the North American gross in a few weeks.
Summit’s The Three Musketeers in 3D was the victim of toxic word-of-mouth and dropped 60% to $3.5 million, earning it a weak ten-day total of $14.8 million. Watch for the candy bar to earn more than the movie, which should finish its domestic run with approximately $20 million.
Rounding out the top ten were three Sony films released in the early fall. The Ides of March landed in eighth place with $2.7 million and a new to date total of $33.8 million. The $40 million mark is a possibility should the movie garner some awards love starting in a few weeks.
Ninth place went to the Brad Pitt hit Moneyball with $2.4 million and a new domestic total of $67.4 million.
Rounding out the top ten was the inspiration drama Courageous with an estimated $1.8 million and a new to-date total of $27.6 million. With a slight drop of only 27%, the smallest in the top ten, the low-budget hit should be able to call it a day with a respectable $35 million in the bank.
Next weekend, Universal will launch the Eddie Murphy/Ben Stiller action comedy Tower Heist while New Line/Warner Brothers will unleash A Harold and Kumar Christmas in 3D. Both will have their eyes set on toppling Puss in Boots from its current reign.
– Shawn Fitzgerald
