The political thriller Vantage Point opened at No. 1 at the North American box office this weekend with $24 million. The action-drama about a presidential assassination seen from the viewpoints of different characters, included a star-studded ensemble cast that featured Dennis Quaid and Matthew Fox as Secret Service agents.
“Audiences really love it when they get a summer-style popcorn movie at a time of the year when they don’t expect it,” Paul Dergarabedian, president of box office tracker Media By Numbers, told The Associated Press. The studio said Vantage Point appealed to a broad audience–52 percent of moviegoers were male and half were under age 30.
Last week’s champ Jumper dropped to second with $12.7 million, while The Spiderwick Chronicles rounded out the top three with $12.6 million. The only other newcomer to make the list was the quirky comedy Be Kind Rewind, starring Jack Black and Mos Def, which opened in eighth place with $4.1 million.
The weekend’s other two debuts, Larry the Cable Guy’s Witless Protection and the dark comedy Charlie Bartlett, failed to make the top 10 list, coming in 13th and 14th place, respectively.
The Top 12 movies took in $90 million, down 10.80 percent from last year’s $101 million on the same weekend last year and down 23.53 percent from last weekend’s total of $117.7 million.
The Top Three films at the box office this time last year: Sony’s Ghost Rider, which stayed at No. 1 in its second week with $20 million in 3,630 theaters, averaging; New Line’s The Number 23, which debuted in second place with $14.6 million in 2,759 theaters; and Buena Vista’s Bridge to Terabithia, which dropped to third place in its second week of release with $14.3 million in 3,139 theaters (Click here to read last year’s box office report).
BOX OFFICE TOP 10 ESTIMATES
(Source: Exhibitor Relations, Inc.)
No. 1: Vantage Point (Fox, PG-13)
• Gross: $22.8 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 3,149
• Per-theater average: $7,264
No. 2: The Spiderwick Chronicles (Paramount, PG)
• Gross: $13.1 million (-31%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,847 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $3,405
• Cume to date: $44 million
No. 3: Jumper (Fox, PG-13)
• Gross: $12.7 million (-54%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,430
• Per-theater average: $3,705
• Cume to date: $56.2 million
No. 4: Step Up 2 the Streets (Walt Disney, PG-13)
• Gross: $9.6 million (-49%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,480
• Per-theater average: $3,873
• Cume to date: $41.2 million
No. 5: Fool’s Gold (Warner Bros. PG-13)
• Gross: $6.5 million (-49%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,075 (-50)
• Per-theater average: $2,131
• Cume to date: $52.7 million
No. 6: Definitely, Maybe (Universal, PG-13)
• Gross: $5.2 million (-47%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,220 (+16)
• Per-theater average: $2,350
• Cume to date: $21.8 million
No. 7: Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins (Universal, PG-13)
• Gross: $4.1 million (-51%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 1,873 (-514)
• Per-theater average: $2,220
• Cume to date: $35.6 million
No. 8: Juno (Fox Searchlight, PG-13)
• Gross: $4.1 million (-10%)
• Weeks opened: 12
• Theaters: 1,727 (-138)
• Per-theater average: $2,406
• Cume to date: $130.4 million
No. 9: Be Kind Rewind (New Line, PG-13)
• Gross: $4 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 808
• Per-theater average: $5,013
No. 10: There Will Be Blood (Paramount Vantage, R)
• Gross: $2.6 million (-11%)
• Weeks opened: 9
• Theaters: 1,402 (-8)
• Per-theater average: $1,917
• Cume to date: $35.1 million
OTHER OPENINGS
Witless Protection (Lionsgate, PG-13)
• Gross: $2.1 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 1,333
• Per-theater average: $1,588
Charlie Bartlett (MGM, R)
• Gross: $1.8 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 1,122
• Per-theater average: $1,637
The Counterfeiters (Sony Classics, R)
• Gross: $100,469
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 8
• Per-theater average: $12,559
