Hosting the Oscars has more than paid off for Hugh Jackman as X-Men Origins: Wolverine carried its $35 million Friday momentum right through the weekend to secure an estimated $87 million weekend cum.
The second highest grossing movie, newcomer Ghosts of Girlfriends Past with Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Garner, mustered $15.3 million away from Wolverine. The only other film to crack $10 million was last weekend’s box office champ Obsessed with $12.2 million.
Most affected by Wolverine was Fighting which dropped from the #4 spot last weekend all the way down to #8. In contrast, Monsters vs Aliens continues to hang around with $5.8 million good enough for a bump up to #5 in its sixth weekend of release.
Here’s the complete top ten weekend box office results for May 1-3:
- 1. Wolverine: $87m
- 2. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past: $15.3m
- 3. Obsessed: $12.2m
- 4. 17 Again: $6.4m
- 5. Monsters vs Aliens: $5.8m
- 6. The Soloist: $5.6m
- 7. Earth: $4.2m
- 8. Fighting: $4.2m
- 9. Hannah Montana: The Movie: $4.1m
- 10. State of Play: $3.7m
The hits will roll on next weekend when J.J. Abrams’ long-awaited Star Trek reboot lands in 3500 theaters or roughly 600 less than Wolverine. Though Star Trek has screened extremely well, it will need to overcome the stigma of being labeled a “space” movie which may turn off females and result in a much lower opening than Wolverine.
The only other newcomer is the comedy Next Day Air which will not pose a threat to Star Trek’s inevitable weekend box office win.
