Maybe it was the anniversary of his birthday this past Friday that did it, but The Lorax, the latest cinematic adaptation of a Dr. Seuss story did big business at the box office this weekend. Meanwhile, a bunch of party hardy kids also showed with a decent opening as well. Here’s how the weekend worked out:
The mass marketing surely helped bring Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax the stellar opening number it managed this weekend. How good was it, you ask? An amazing $70 million, nearly $30 more than predicted. This trumps the previous animated Seuss record holder, Horton Hears A Who!, which opened with $45 million back in 2008. It certainly didn’t hurt that Zac Efron and Taylor Swift’s names were featured in advertising as well, but consider this the perfect family film for this time period, especially since Journey 2: The Mysterious Island skewed slightly older. The Lorax has already made back its budget this weekend, and should have a nice gross by the time it ends its run.
Debuting in second place is the teenager party/found film flick Project X, with $20 million, about $2 million less than predicted. This certainly wasn’t a bad showing, especially seeing as how the film doesn’t have any star power to it. I don’t expect it to stay in theatres very long mind you, so if you’re interested in seeing this one with a crowd, you better move quick.
As for the rest of the top five, Act of Valor dropped from first place to third with $13 million, Safe House stayed steady in fourth place with $7.2 million while Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds rounded things out with $7 million (the latter two could switch spots come Monday).
So, to recap, here were our predictions:
1) Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax – $42 million
2) Project X – $22 million
3) Act of Valor – $16 million
4) Journey 2: The Mysterious Island – $10 million
5) Safe House – $9 million
And here’s how the weekend turned out:
1) Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax – $70 million
2) Project X – $20 million
3) Act of Valor – $13 million
4) Safe House – $7.2 million
5) Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds – $7 million
Next weekend sees the release of Disney’ big sci-fi epic John Carter and the Elizabeth Olsen thriller Silent House. Be sure to check back on Friday for our predictions!
