Adam Sandler, Justin Bieber and pint-sized Gnomes helped inject desperately needed life into the North American box office this weekend as Just Go With It, Justin Bieber: Never Say Never and Gnomeo & Juliet all had strong bows. Focus Features also debuted its historical drama, The Eagle, which opened with flat numbers. Following weeks of weak offerings, unforgiving winter weather and other obstacles such as the Super Bowl to contend with, moviegoers finally began to return to the multiplexes. Still, while the box office was up a huge 89% from last weekend, the overall box office was still lagging behind last year at this time to the tune of 29%.
Once again an Adam Sandler comedy has withstood horrific reviews to land solid numbers in its debut. His latest, the romantic comedy Just Go With It, brushed aside the 18% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes to gross a big $31 million from 3,548 screens. The film opened in second place on Friday with $9.7 million thanks to the fan-driven opening of the Bieber flick, but surged by 46% on Saturday to earn $13.6 million. As Sandler’s last blockbuster, 2010’s Grown Ups, benefited from having the likes of Kevin James and Chris Rock co-starring, Just Go With It most likely benefited from Jennifer Aniston’s fans turning out. While critics hated the $80 million production, audiences thought otherwise by bestowing the film an “A-” rating on Cinemascore.
Malls across America were a little emptier this weekend as young girls (and the parents who were stuck taking them) turned out in force for the big screen debut of teen Internet sensation Justin Bieber. The aggressively marketed $13 million 3D documentary Justin Bieber: Never Say Never was launched by Paramount Pictures on 3,105 screens to sing up a big $30.3 million opener. With a large percentage of Bieber’s fan base attending on opening day to the tune of $12.5 million (shouldn’t they have been in school?), the movie took an understandable but somewhat light drop on Saturday to approximately $11.1 million. Critics showed the flavor of the moment some respect with a 63% approval on Rotten Tomatoes. Cinemascore managed to elicit an “A” rating from moviegoers based on how many times they repeated the phrase “Like, oh my God!” outside the theater.
In third place for the weekend with a solid $25.5 million debut was Disney’s latest 3D animated feature Gnomeo & Juliet. Debuting on 2,994 screens, the comedy received mixed reviews (54% on RT) but hit the target for families who have been largely ignored at the box office since Christmas. Originally in production at Miramax (Disney bought the film rights when Miramax was sold), the Elton John-produced feature had the benefit of being the sole animated feature in wide release. While it’s uncertain if this Disney production will reach the financial highs of their last animated smash Tangled, the film is poised to bring in a healthy amount of cash over the next couple of weeks as kids get ready for their winter school break. The film features the voice talents of James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, Michael Caine, Jason Statham and Maggie Smith.
The fourth and final wide release of the weekend was Focus Features’ historical drama The Eagle which landed with a thud with $8.6 million from 2,296 screens. Directed by Kevin MacDonald (State of Play, The Last King of Scotland) and starring Jamie Bell and Channing Tatum, the film was the only one of the new quartet to aim at the under-25 male action crowd. Unfortunately the television ads failed to sell the movie as something other than yet another knockoff of Ridley Scott’s Gladiator. The weak 34% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes probably didn’t help matters much either.
Last weekend’s number one film The Roommate dropped by 44% this weekend to take in an estimated $8.4 million to land in fifth place. After ten days the Leighton Meester flick has amassed $26 million and should end its run near the $40 million mark.
Despite no longer being in the top five, The King’s Speech kept speaking loud and clear in the days leading up to the Academy Awards ceremonies. Easing a negligible 4% from last weekend, the Tom Hooper-directed drama earned another $7.4 million from 2,263 screens to bring its overall domestic total to an awards-worthy $94 million. The film should cross the $100 million mark by next Friday. As of last Thursday, the film has made $87 million overseas to bring its current overall total to $181 million or ten times its production budget.
While Black Swan is no longer dancing around the top ten (it now sits $300,000 shy of the century mark), Natalie Portman continued her top ten winning streak via her other box office hit, Paramount’s No Strings Attached. In its fourth weekend the movie dropped a slight 29.5% to smooch $5.6 million in estimated sales from 2,756 screens to bring its overall domestic haul to the $59.8 million mark. The film should see a nice little spike on Monday night thanks to Hallmark Card Day.
In eighth place for the weekend was Universal’s 3D dud Sanctum which dropped by 46% to $5.1 million from 2,789 theaters to bring its ten-day domestic haul to approximately $17.5 million. Chances are quite good that Universal isn’t crying poverty too loud over this particular under performer as the Comcast-owned studio paid a mere $10 million for North American distribution rights to the James Cameron-produced drama. The film should excavate roughly $25 million by the end of its run.
Rounding out the top ten were two early winter hits. Paramount’s True Grit remake enjoyed its eighth and most likely last weekend in the top ten with a $3.77 million take for a new total of $160.3 million. Depending on what it picks up at the Academy Awards, the movie could finish somewhere between $170-175 million. Sony’s The Green Hornet eased 40% to land in tenth with an estimated $3.6 million from 2,090 screens. After five weeks, Britt Reid and Kato have KO’d $92.4 million domestically and $83 million overseas for $175 million so far.
Next weekend the President’s Day weekend sees the arrival of the sci-fi action flick I Am Number Four from Disney, Warner debuts the Liam Neeson-thriller Unknown and Fox bestows us with the sequel that we have all been waiting for, Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son. Thank. You. God.
– Shawn Fitzgerald
