Well it’s about time! After a few lackluster months at the movies, Iron Man started the summer blockbusting extravaganza with a $100.7 million opening at the North American box office, making it the second-best premiere ever for a non-sequel.
“We could not have hoped for a better way for Marvel Studios to blast off,” David Maisel, chairman of the unit, a division of Marvel Entertainment, told The Associated Press, which stands to pull in a greater share of box office receipts and merchandising money by financing movies itself.
Debuting in second place with $15.5 million was the romantic comedy Made of Honor, starring heartthrob Patrick Dempsey and Michelle Monaghan.
Despite the huge Iron Man opening, box office overall business was still down compared to the same weekend last year, when Spider-Man 3 had a record debut of $151.1 million. The top 12 movies took in $154.1 million, down 15 percent from a year ago.
“Nonetheless, Iron Man did better than expected,” Paul Dergarabedian, president of box office tracker Media By Numbers told AP. “This is certainly the shot in the arm the marketplace has needed.”
The top three openers the same weekend last year were: Spider-Man 3, which opened at No. 1 with $151 million; Disturbia, which dropped to second place in its fourth week with $5.8 million; and Fracture, which dropped to third place in its third week with $3.6 million.
BOX OFFICE TOP 10 ESTIMATES (Source by: Media by Numbers)
No. 1: Iron Man (Paramount, PG-13)
• Gross: $100.7 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 4,105
• Per-theater average: $24,543
No. 2: Made of Honor (Sony, PG-13)
• Gross: $15.5 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,729
• Per-theater average: $5,680
No. 3: Baby Mama (Universal, PG-13)
• Gross: $10.3 million (-41%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,548 (+5)
• Per-theater average: $4,055
• Cume to date: $33.2 million
No. 4: Forgetting Sarah Marshall (Universal, R)
• Gross: $6.11 million (-44%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 2,872 (+73)
• Per-theater average: $2,135
• Cume to date: $44.8 million
No. 5: Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (Warner Bros., R)
• Gross: $6 million (-60%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,363
• Per-theater average: $2,363
• Cume to date: $25.2 million
No. 6: The Forbidden Kingdom (Lionsgate, PG-13)
• Gross: $4.2 million (-63%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 2,960 (-191)
• Per-theater average: $1,419
• Cume to date: $45.1 million
No. 7: Nim’s Island(Fox, PG)
• Gross: $2.7 million (-40%)
• Weeks opened: 5
• Theaters: 2,478 (-499)
• Per-theater average: $1,110
• Cume to date: $42.5 million
No. 8: Prom Night (Sony/Screen Gems, PG-13)
• Gross: $2.5 million (-45%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 2,434 (-387)
• Per-theater average: $1,027
• Cume to date: $41.4 million
No. 9: 21 (Sony, PG-13)
• Gross: $2.1 million (-48%)
• Weeks opened: 6
• Theaters: 2,242 (-710)
• Per-theater average: $937
• Cume to date: $79 million
No. 10: 88 Minutes (Sony/Tri-Star, R)
• Gross: $1.6 million (-55%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 1,765 (-403)
• Per-theater average: $907
• Cume to date: $15.4 million
OTHER OPENINGS
Redbelt (Sony Pictures Classics, R)
• Gross: $68,646
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 6
• Per-theater average: $11,441
Son of Rambow (Paramount Vantage, PG-13)
• Gross: $52,549
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 5
• Per-theater average: $10,510
