It was Thanksgiving weekend in the U.S., but that led to virtually no surprises at the box office this weekend. Here’s how it all turned out.
For the second weekend in a row, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 topped the box office, bringing in an estimated $42 million (I had predicted a gross of $36 million). That puts the film at an astounding $221 million in just a week and could possible put it on pace to gross $300 million when its run is complete. Am I the only who find that really depressing?
Landing at number two as predicted with $29 million is The Muppets. In just one weekend the movie has made more than every other film in the franchise other than 1979’s The Muppet Movie. The hype clearly did its job, but word of mouth has also been excellent, as have the reviews. The film is already a success, but it sure would be nice to see The Muppets hit $100 million, which I don’t think is out of the realm of possibility.
Dropping one spot to number three as predicted was Happy Feet 2 with $12 million, a definite let down for everybody involved, including me, as I had thought it would bring in at least $15 million. The total for Happy Feet 2 is currently $42, and I doubt it will be able to come even remotely close to $100 million.
Arthur Christmas brought in $12 million for its opening weekend to hit the number four spot, one million less than I had predicted. It wasn’t a great showing at all, but the subject matter could play well throughout the season. As for Martin Scorsese’s Hugo, I didn’t think it would make it into the top five and predicted it would only gross $6 million. Well, I was wrong. The critically acclaimed kids film brought in a reasonable $11 million and is poised to grow over the coming weeks. In the meantime, Puss In Boots wound up at number eight with $7 million (a million less than I predicted).
So, to recap, here were our predictions:
1) The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 – $36 million
2) The Muppets – $30 million
3) Happy Feet 2 – $15 million
4) Arthur Christmas – $12 million
5) Puss In Boots – $8 million
And here’s how the weekend turned out:
1) The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 – $42 million
2) The Muppets – $29 million
3) Happy Feet 2 – $13 million
4) Arthur Christmas – $12 million
5) Hugo – $11 million
With no major released next weekend, look for Breaking Dawn Part 1 to hold onto the top spot for a third weekend. Check back on Friday to see our predictions!
