Treasure hunters, a trio of singing chipmunks, and Will Smith on his own helped Hollywood end the year on a high note. Nicolas Cage‘s National Treasure: Book of Secrets topped the North American box office for the second weekend with $35.6 million, followed by Alvin and the Chipmunks with $30 million, and Smith‘s I Am Legend with $27.5 million.
Recovering from a sluggish fall, the box office will finish the year with record revenues of about $9.7 billion, up from the previous best of $9.45 billion in 2004, according to The Associated Press.
“It’s turned into like a two-week-long weekend for the movie industry,” Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media By Numbers told AP.
Of the movies opening Christmas Day, the sci-fi horror sequel Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem came in sixth place with $10 million, and the family film Water Horse: Legend of the Deep placed seventh with $9.2 million. Denzel Washington’s The Great Debaters failed to make the top 10, grossing $6.3 million over the weekend.
Opening with huge numbers in limited release was There Will Be Blood, starring Daniel Day-Lewis in a tale of greed and violence during California’s oil boom in the early 20th century. Playing at just two theaters in New York City and Los Angeles, it took in $185,525 over the weekend and $309,703 since opening Wednesday. It expands to the top 10 markets Friday.
The top 12 movies took in $168.7 million, up 17.47 percent from last year’s $143.6 million on the same weekend and was also up 10.94 percent from last weekend’s total of $152 million.
The Top Three films at the box office this time last year: Fox’s Night at the Museum, which stayed at No. 1 in its second week with $36.7 million in 3,768 theaters, averaging $9,758 per theater; Sony’s The Pursuit of Happyness, which stayed in second place in its third week with $19.3 million in 2,870 theaters, averaging $6,746 per theater; and Paramount’s Dreamgirls, which moved up to third place in its third week of release with $14.2 million in 852 theaters, averaging $16,549 per theater (Click here to read last year’s box office report).
BOX OFFICE TOP 10 ESTIMATES
(Source: Exhibitor Relations, Inc.)
No. 1: National Treasure: Book of Secrets (Walt Disney, PG)
• Gross: $35.6 million (-20%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,832 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $9,299
• Cume to date: $124 million
No. 2: Alvin and the Chipmunks (20th Century Fox, PG-13)
• Gross: $30 million (+6%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,484 (-15)
• Per-theater average: $8,611
• Cume to date: $142.3 million
No. 3: I Am Legend (Warner Bros., PG-13)
• Gross: $27.5 million (-18%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,636 (+16)
• Per-theater average: $7,570
• Cume to date: $194.6 million
No. 4: Charlie Wilson’s War (Universal, R)
• Gross: $11.7 million (+22%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,575 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $4,570
• Cume to date: $34.5 million
No. 5: Juno (Fox Searchlight, PG-13)
• Gross: $10.3 million (+201%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 998 (+694)
• Per-theater average: $10,321
• Cume to date: $25.6 million
No. 6: Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (20th Cent Fox, R)
• Gross: $10 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,611
• Per-theater average: $3,849
• Cume to date: $26.8 million (opened Tuesday)
No. 7: Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (Sony, PG-13)
• Gross: $9.2 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,772
• Per-theater average: $3,319
• Cume to date: $16.8 million (opened Tuesday)
No. 8: P.S. I Love You (Warner Bros., PG-13)
• Gross: $9.1 million (+40%)
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,464 (+10)
• Per-theater average: $3,693
• Cume to date: $23.3 million
No. 9: Sweeney Todd (DreamWorks, R)
• Gross: $8 million (-14%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 1,249 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $6,405
• Cume to date: $26.7 million
No. 10: Enchanted (Disney, PG)
• Gross: $6.5 million (+54%)
• Weeks opened: 6
• Theaters: 2,262 (-490)
• Per-theater average: $2,874
• Cume to date: $110.6 million
OTHER OPENINGS
The Great Debaters (MGM, PG-13)
• Gross: $6.3 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 1,171
• Per-theater average: $5,383
• Cume to date: $13.5 million (opened Tuesday)
The Bucket List (Warner Bros., PG-13)
• Gross: $323,000
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 16
• Per-theater average: $20,188
• Cume to date: $618,000 (opened Tuesday)
There Will Be Blood (Sony Classics, R)
• Gross: $185,525
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2
• Per-theater average: $92,763
• Cume to date: $310,000 (opened Wednesday)
The Orphanage (Picturehouse, R)
• Gross: $230,233
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 19
• Per-theater average: $12,118
Persepolis (Sony Classics, PG-13)
• Gross: $91,107
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 7
• Per-theater average: $13,015
