Enchanted, starring Amy Adams as an animated fairy princess who comes to life, is now the second biggest Thanksgiving opener ever, behind Toy Story 2, which grossed $80.1 million in a five-day period in 1999.
Among other new wide releases, the family dramedy This Christmas, starring Loretta Devine, Delroy Lindo and Chris Brown, opened in second place with $18.6 million and $27.1 million since Wednesday, while the video-game adaptation Hitman, starring Timothy Olyphant, debuted in fourth with $13 million over the weekend and $21 million since Wednesday.
The drama August Rush, starring Freddie Highmore, Keri Russell and Jonathan Rhys Meyers, opened in seventh place with $9.4 million for the weekend and $13.3 million since Wednesday. And finally, the Stephen King adaptation The Mist, premiered in ninth place with $9.1 million for the weekend and $13 million since Wednesday.
Overall, the box office numbers went up after being in a slump. "That's good for an industry that's been in a downtrend for almost two months," Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers told The Associated Press. "Thanksgiving sets the tone for the rest of the year and the holiday season in general. This was a key weekend, and it delivered."
The Top 12 movies took in a total of $153 million for the weekend and $218 million since Wednesday, up 6 percent from last year’s total of $205.7 million and up 65.12 percent from last weekend’s total of $92.6 million.
The Top Three films at the box office this time last year: Warner Bros.’ Happy Feet, which stayed at No. 1 in its second week with $37 million in 3,153 theaters, averaging $11,747 per theater; Sony’s Casino Royale, which stayed in second place in its second week with $30.7 million in 3,984 theaters, averaging $7,727 per theater; and Buena Vista’s Deja Vu, which opened in third place with $20.5 million in 3,110 theaters, averaging $6,616 per theater (Click here to read last year's box office report).
BOX OFFICE TOP 10 ESTIMATES
(Source: Exhibitor Relations, Inc.)
No. 1: Enchanted (Disney, PG)
• Gross: $35.3 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 3,730
• Per-theater average: $9,472
• Cume to date: $50 million (opened Wednesday)
No. 2: This Christmas (Sony/Screen Gems, PG-13)
• Gross: $18.6 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 1,858
• Per-theater average: $10,011
• Cume to date: $27.1 million (opened Wednesday)
No. 3: Beowulf (Paramount, PG-13)
• Gross: $16.2 million (-41%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,218 (+65)
• Per-theater average: $5,047
• Cume to date: $56.3 million
No. 4: Hitman (20th Century Fox, R)
• Gross: $13 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,458
• Per-theater average: $5,303
• Cume to date: $21 million (opened Wednesday)
No. 5: Bee Movie (Paramount, PG)
• Gross: $12 million (-14%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 3,507 (-477)
• Per-theater average: $3,425
• Cume to date: $112 million
No. 6: Fred Claus (Warner Bros., PG)
• Gross: $10.7 million (-10%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,603 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $2,979
• Cume to date: $53 million
No. 7: August Rush (Warner Bros., PG)
• Gross: $9.4 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,310
• Per-theater average: $4,082
• Cume to date: $13.3 million (opened Wednesday)
No. 8: American Gangster (Universal, R)
• Gross: $9.2 million (-28%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 2,799 (-311)
• Per-theater average: $3,290
• Cume to date: $115.7 million
No. 9: The Mist (MGM, R)
• Gross: $9 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,423
• Per-theater average: $3,740
• Cume to date: $13 million (opened Wednesday)
No. 10: No Country for Old Men (Miramax, R)
• Gross: $8.1million (+164%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 860 (+712)
• Per-theater average: $9,433
• Cume to date: $16.6 million
OTHER OPENINGS
I'm Not There (Weinstein Co., R)
• Gross: $757,385
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 63
• Per-theater average: $5,826
• Cume to date: $1 million (opened Wednesday)
