Will Smith's The Pursuit of Happyness took second place with $19.3 million, and although no new movies went into wide release, Dreamgirls, which expanded to more theaters Christmas Day, came in third place with $15.5 million, averaging a whopping $18,192 per screen. It was showing on just 852 screens, compared to 3,768 for Night at the Museum.
"We knew it was a movie that was a real crowd-pleaser," Rob Moore, Paramount's president of marketing and distribution, told The Associated Press. "The amazing word of mouth is bringing it along. It's been a while since a musical really worked."
The Top 12 movies grossed $147.7 million over the weekend, up 12.41 percent from last year’s draw of $131.4 million and up 35.70 percent from last weekend’s total of $108.8 million.
The Top Three films at the box office this time last year were: Buena Vista’s The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, which moved up to No. 1 in its fourth week of release with $25.6 million in 3,853 theaters, averaging $6,667 per theater; Universal’s King Kong, which dropped to second place in its third week with $24.7 million in 3,627 theaters, averaging $6,830 per theater; and Sony’s Fun with Dick and Jane, which opened in third place with $16.5 million in 3,056 theaters, averaging $5,407 per theater (Click here to read last year's box office report).
BOX OFFICE TOP 10, ESTIMATES
(Source: Exhibitor Relations, Inc.)
No. 1: Night at the Museum (20th Century Fox, PG)
• Gross: $37.8 million (+24%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,768 (+83)
• Per-theater average: $10,032
No. 2: The Pursuit of Happyness (Sony, PG-13)
• Gross: $19.3 million (+30%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,870 (+7)
• Per-theater average: $6,725
• Cume to date: $98.3 million
No. 3: Dreamgirls (Paramount, PG-13)
• Gross: $15.5 million (+6709)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 852
• Per-theater average: $18,192
• Cume to date: $38.4 million
No. 4: Charlotte's Web (Paramount, G)
• Gross: $12 million (+59%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,745 (+17)
• Per-theater average: $3,204
• Cume to date: $52.8 million
No. 5: Rocky Balboa (MGM, PG)
• Gross: $11.3 million (-7%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,019 (+2)
• Per-theater average: $3,760
• Cume to date: $48.8 million
No. 6: The Good Shepherd (Universal, R)
• Gross: $11.2 million (+13%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,218 (+3)
• Per-theater average: $5,070
No. 7: Eragon (20th Cent. Fox, PG)
• Gross: $8.4 million (+21%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 2,985 (-45)
• Per-theater average: $2,839
• Cume to date: $56.6 million
No. 8: We Are Marshall (Warner Bros., PG)
• Gross: $8 million (+31%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,606 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $3,079
No. 9: Happy Feet (Warner Bros., PG)
• Gross: $7.8 million (+52%)
• Weeks opened: 7
• Theaters: 2,565 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $3,055
• Cume to date: $176.1 million
No. 10: The Holiday (Sony Pictures, PG)
• Gross: $6.7 million (+38%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 2,698 (+81)
• Per-theater average: $2,483
• Cume to date: $50 million
OTHER OPENINGS
Pan's Labyrinth (Picturehouse, R)
• Gross: $600,000
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 17
• Per-theater average: $35,294
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (Paramount, R)
• Gross: $39,000
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 3
• Per-theater average: $13,000
Miss Potter (MGM, PG)
• Gross: $9,074
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2
• Per-theater average: $4,537
The Dead Girl (First Look, R)
• Gross: $6,300
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2
• Per-theater average: $3,150
