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Box Office Analysis, Oct. 23: 'The Prestige' Magic at Box Office
HOLLYWOOD - In a three-way race this weekend, the twisty magic act The Prestige, starring Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale, came out on top of the North American box office with a magical $14.8 million.
The Prestige outperformed Clint Eastwood's World War II saga Flags of Our Fathers, which opened in the third spot with $10.2 million, while Martin Scorsese's The Departed held on in second place with a strong $13.7 million.
According to The Associated Press, The Prestige--with 70 percent of its viewers under 35--drew a younger crowd that tends to turn out in bigger numbers over opening weekend. Eighty percent of the audience for Flags was older than 30.
"I don't think it was a movie that was destined to make a huge opening-weekend splash," Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations, told AP. "Flags is a film that definitely has more appeal to older audiences, so I think over time, it'll do well."
Other newcomers this weekend included the feel-good family film Flicka, which rounded out the Top Five with $7.7 million, and director Sofia Coppola’s lush Marie Antoinette, which debuted in eighth place with $5.3 million.
The Top 12 movies grossed $88.8 million this weekend, up 26.56 percent from last year’s draw of $70.2 but down 10.35 percent from last weekend’s total of $99.1 million.
The Top Three films at the box office this time last year were: Universal’s Doom, which opened at No. 1 with $15.4 million in 3,043 theaters, averaging $5,090 per theater; DreamWorks’ Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story, which opened in second place with $9.1 million in 2,007 theaters, averaging $4,573 per theaters; and Buena Vista’s Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, which dropped to third place in its third week of release with $8.5 million in 3,472 theaters, averaging $2,472 per theaters (Click here to read last year's box office report).
BOX OFFICE TOP 10, ESTIMATES
(Source: Exhibitor Relations, Inc.)
No. 1: The Prestige (Buena Vista, PG-13)
• Gross: $14.8 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,281
• Per-theater average: $6,496
No. 2: The Departed (Warner Bros., R)
• Gross: $13.6 million (-28%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,005 (-12)
• Per-theater average: $4,551
• Cume to date: $77.1 million
No. 3: Flags of Our Fathers (Paramount, R)
• Gross: $10.2 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 1,876
• Per-theater average: $5,437
No. 4: Open Season (Sony Pictures, PG)
• Gross: $8 million (-28%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 3,379 (-308)
• Per-theater average: $2,368
• Cume to date: $69.6 million
No. 5: Flicka (20th Cent. Fox, PG)
• Gross: $7.7 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,877
• Per-theater average: $2,676
No. 6: The Grudge 2 (Sony, PG-13)
• Gross: $7.7 million (-63%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,214 (+3)
• Per-theater average: $2,396
• Cume to date: $31.3 million
No. 7: Man of the Year (Universal, PG-3)
• Gross: $7 million (-43%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,522 (+7)
• Per-theater average: $2,789
• Cume to date: $22.5 million
No. 8: Marie Antoinette (Sony, PG-13)
• Gross: $5.3 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 859
• Per-theater average: $6,170
No. 9: Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (New Line, R)
• Gross: $3.8 million (-48%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 2,569 (-251)
• Per-theater average: $1,508
• Cume to date: $35.9 million
No. 10: The Marine (20th Century Fox, PG-3)
• Gross: $3.7 million (-48%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,545 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $1,464
• Cume to date: $12.5 million
OTHER OPENINGS
Running with Scissors (Sony, R)
• Gross: $225,000
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 8
• Per-theater average: $28,125
Shortbus (Roadside Attraction, R)
• Gross: $10,800
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 6
• Per-theater average: $1,800
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