Finally, some new blood, so to speak. The torture flick Hostel, from executive producer Quentin Tarantino, opened with $20.1 million, bumping reigning champs The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and King Kong down to second and third places, respectively.
Hostel follows two Americans (Jay Hernandez and Derek Richardson) whose European pleasure jaunt turns nightmarish when a brothel they visit turns out to be a chamber of torture.
“The track record of horror films tells you maybe Hollywood should just release horror movies to be successful. I can’t think of a more consistently performing genre at the box office,” Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations told The Associated Press.
The other opener this weekend–the raunchy R-rated comedy Grandma’s Boy from executive producer Adam Sandler–failed to make it to the top 10, making only $2.8 million despite opening in over 2,000 theaters. Meanwhile, Oscar frontrunner Brokeback Mountain expanded into more theaters and took ninth place with $5.7 million.
The Top 12 films grossed an estimated $106.6 million, up 9.19 percent from last year’s draw of $97.7 million but down 18.82 percent from last weekend’s total of $131.4 million.
The Top Three films at the box office this time last year were: Universal’s PG-13 Meet the Fockers, which stayed at No. 1 for the third week with $28.4 million in 3,527 theaters, averaging $8,080 per theater; Universal Pictures’ PG-13 rated White Noise, which opened in second place with $24.1 million in 2,261 theaters, averaging $10,665 per theater; and Miramax’s PG-13 The Aviator, which stayed in third place in its fourth week with $7.4 million in 1,867 theaters, averaging $4,013 per theater. (Click here to read last year’s box office report)
BOX OFFICE TOP 10, ESTIMATES
(Source: Exhibitor Relations, Inc.)
No. 1: Hostel ( Lionsgate, R)
• Gross: $20.1 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,195
• Per-theater average: $9,157
No. 2: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe ( Buena Vista, PG)
• Gross: $15.4 million (-40%)
• Weeks opened: 5
• Theaters: 3,514 (-339)
• Per-theater average: $4,390
• Cume to date: $247.5 million
No. 3: King Kong (Universal, PG-13)
• Gross: $12.5 million (-50%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 3,482 (-145)
• Per-theater average: $3,590
• Cume to date: $192.5 million
No. 4: Fun with Dick and Jane(Sony Pictures, PG-13)
• Gross: $12.2 million (-26%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,182 (+126)
• Per-theater average: $3,834
• Cume to date: $81.3 million
No. 5: Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (20th Cent Fox, PG)
• Gross: $8.3 million (-43%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,108 (-103)
• Per-theater average: $2,671
• Cume to date: $66.4 million
No. 6: Munich (Universal, R)
• Gross: $7.5 million (+58%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 1,485 (+953)
• Per-theater average: $5,051
• Cume to date: $25.2 million
No. 7 Memoirs of a Geisha(Sony, PG-13)
• Gross: $6 million (-23%)
• Weeks opened: 5
• Theaters: 1,589 (+42)
• Per-theater average: $3,776
• Cume to date: $39.7 million
No. 8: Rumor Has It (Warner Bros., PG-13)
• Gross: $5.8 million (-37%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 2,766 (-49)
• Per-theater average: $2,126
• Cume to date: $35.3 million
No. 9: Brokeback Mountain (Focus Features, R)
• Gross: $5.7 million (+59%)
• Weeks opened: 5
• Theaters: 484 (+215)
• Per-theater average: $11,881
• Cume to date: $22.4 million
No. 10: The Family Stone (20th Cent Fox, PG-13)
• Gross: $4.6 million (-43%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 2,085 (-379)
• Per-theater average: $2,218
• Cume to date: $53.1 million
OTHER OPENINGS
Grandma’s Boy (20th Century Fox, R)
• Gross: $2.8 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,015
• Per-theater average: $1,427
