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
