Weekend Box Office (November 12 - 14, 2010)

by Gitesh Pandya

THIS WEEKEND Will Ferrell's cartoon creation Megamind enjoyed supreme rule over the North American box office for a second consecutive frame as the DreamWorks Animation hit grossed $29.1M, according to final studio figures, to retain the number one spot. Dropping only 37%, the PG-rated 3D flick held up very well with paying audiences almost matching the 33% sophomore dip witnessed by the company's 2007 toon Bee Movie from this same weekend. That Jerry Seinfeld pic collected 57% of its $126.6M final in the first ten days. If Megamind follows the same November-December pattern, it should end up with over $150M domestically and certainly a ton more overseas. The blue villain also had a much smaller second weekend drop than Monsters vs. Aliens which fell 45% so the animation studio must be happy with the staying power.

Fox raced into second place with its disaster thriller Unstoppable which bowed to $22.7M from 3,207 theaters for a strong $7,075 average. The PG-13 film starring Denzel Washington, Chris Pine, and Rosario Dawson was inspired by true events and tells of a team of train workers that races against the clock to stop a runaway train carrying toxic waste from crashing in a heavily populated city. Reviews were outstanding for the Tony Scott-directed actioner which really helped the film connect with adult audiences. Saturday sales climbed an encouraging 19%. Starpower from Washington also helped as the bankable star routinely sees his films open north of $20M. With strong reviews, little action competition in the weeks ahead, and the busy Thanksgiving holiday around the corner, Unstoppable should enjoy a durable run.

The Robert Downey Jr. comedy Due Date took a 53% tumble in the second weekend thanks to shaky word-of-mouth and grossed $15.4M for Warner Bros. The R-rated road trip flick has amassed an impressive $58.9M in ten days and should end its journey with about $90M.

Audiences weren't too interested in alien invasions as the sci-fi actioner Skyline opened in fourth place with only $11.7M. The latest underperformer from Universal averaged a mild $4,060 from 2,880 sites. The studio declined to screen the PG-13 film for critics and when reviews finally ran when the film debuted they were brutal. The modest budget is estimated to be only $10M.

Faring worst among the weekend's new releases was the workplace comedy Morning Glory starring Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford, and Diane Keaton which debuted in fifth place with $9.2M. Paramount released the PG-13 film on Wednesday and collected slow mid-week numbers resulting in a weak $11.8M over five days. Averaging a disappointing $3,655 over three days from 2,518 venues, the story of a young woman tapped to produce the lowest-rated morning news show earned mixed reviews from critics and played to an older and more female crowd.

Tyler Perry's latest entry For Colored Girls... suffered a troubling drop in its second frame falling 67% to $6.5M. Rated R, the ensemble pic based on a popular play has grossed $30.7M in the first ten days and should finish with $40-45M for Lionsgate. It was the worst second weekend drop of any movie from the busy filmmaker.

Still holding up well in its fifth round was the spy film Red which slipped 43% to $5M giving Summit $79.7M to date. Making about as much money this fall, but with no pricey stars inflating the budget, was the supernatural hit Paranormal Activity 2. The Paramount release scared up $3M, off 58%, for a $81.9M cume.

Extra-dimensional sequels rounded out the top ten. The torture flick Saw 3D fell 63% to $2.9M while the zany stunts pic Jackass 3D declined by 55% to $2.2M. Totals stand at $43.6M for Lionsgate and $114.6M for Paramount.

Expanding in their second weekend of release were a pair of Oscar hopefuls. Danny Boyle's mountain climber saga 127 Hours went from four to 22 locations in several top markets and grossed $438,539 for a potent $19,934 average for Fox Searchlight. Summit's CIA thriller Fair Game expanded from 46 to 175 sites and captured $1M for a mediocre $5,832 average. Cumes stand at $811,528 and $1.9M, respectively.

The top ten films grossed $107.7M which was down 13% from last year when 2012 opened in the top spot with $65.2M; and down 20% from 2008 when Quantum of Solace debuted at number one with $67.5M.


Compared to projections, Megamind and Unstoppable were both on target with my respective forecasts of $30M and $22M. Skyline opened below my $16M prediction while Morning Glory was close to my $11M projection.

Check the box office chart for the Top November Openings. Get earlier box office updates and analysis by following BoxOfficeGuru.com on Twitter.

For a Blu-Ray review of Beauty and the Beast, visit The Chief Report.

Be sure to check back on Thursday for a complete summary, including projections, for next weekend when Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1 and The Next Three Days fight for the number one spot.

Marketplace - Shop for DVDs, electronics, books, and posters at discounted prices:

# Title Nov 12 - 14 Nov 5 - 7 % Chg. Theaters Weeks AVG Cumulative Distributor
1 Megamind $ 29,120,461 $ 46,016,833 -36.7 3,949 2 $ 7,374 $ 88,822,635 Paramount
2 Unstoppable 22,688,457 3,207 1 7,075 22,688,457 Fox
3 Due Date 15,419,042 32,689,406 -52.8 3,365 2 4,582 58,897,308 Warner Bros.
4 Skyline 11,692,415 2,880 1 4,060 11,692,415 Universal
5 Morning Glory 9,203,266 2,518 1 3,655 11,809,321 Paramount
6 For Colored Girls... 6,517,280 19,497,324 -66.6 2,127 2 3,064 30,687,848 Lionsgate
7 Red 4,973,539 8,652,086 -42.5 2,878 5 1,728 79,677,396 Summit
8 Paranormal Activity 2 2,980,201 7,034,742 -57.6 2,403 4 1,240 81,930,657 Paramount
9 Saw 3D 2,862,449 7,731,075 -63.0 1,976 3 1,449 43,580,310 Lionsgate
10 Jackass 3D 2,235,457 4,951,282 -54.9 1,607 5 1,391 114,643,266 Paramount
11 Secretariat 2,205,163 4,067,715 -45.8 2,019 6 1,092 54,747,037 Buena Vista
12 The Social Network 1,770,077 3,424,860 -48.3 1,088 7 1,627 87,807,502 Sony
13 Hereafter 1,318,493 4,011,397 -67.1 1,691 5 780 31,448,842 Warner Bros.
14 Life As We Know It 1,294,110 3,066,179 -57.8 1,239 6 1,044 50,754,729 Warner Bros.
15 Fair Game 1,020,654 651,082 56.8 175 2 5,832 1,919,640 Summit
16 Conviction 610,847 1,628,786 -62.5 493 5 1,239 6,022,823 Fox Searchlight
17 The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest 520,085 746,572 -30.3 208 3 2,500 2,821,932 Music Box
18 Inside Job 478,767 266,415 79.7 250 6 1,915 1,566,031 Sony Classics
19 127 Hours 438,539 264,851 65.6 22 2 19,934 811,528 Fox Searchlight
20 The Town 438,397 1,164,382 -62.3 375 9 1,169 90,626,556 Warner Bros.
Top 5 $ 88,123,641 $ 114,586,724 -23.1
Top 10 107,692,567 138,076,720 -22.0
Top 20 117,787,699 147,648,999 -20.2
Top 20 vs. 2009 117,787,699 136,193,124 -13.5

Last Updated: November 15, 2010 at 7:00PM ET

Watch Gitesh Pandya's weekly box office preview on CNN International airing live each Thursday at 7:40pm ET.