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Well, it looks like the Saw franchise’s reign of horror has lost a bit of its foothold in the late October box office. Micro-budgeted Paranormal Activity continued to steamroll the competition in theaters, finally taking the top spot in its fifth weekend of release with an estimated $22 million.
That brings Paranormal’s total to a hefty $62.5 million. To put that into perspective, that’s over 4000 times more than the $15,000 it cost to make. Ridiculous. Saw VI pulled in a not-disgusting $14.8 million in its 2nd place debut, but that’s less than half of what Saw V made in its bow last year in the same frame. Lionsgate execs probably paled visibly today after hearing that Paramount is considering a Paranormal Activity 2 (which, for the record, is probably about as good an idea as Blair Witch 2 was). As tired as I am of Jigsaw, I can at least see why the Saw formula works in a franchise. There’s a certain novelty to Paranormal Activity that I’m not sure can be captured in a sequel.
Meanwhile, Where the Wild Things Are, last week’s number 1, plummeted 56% to 3rd with a $14.4 million haul. It’s $54 million total is still well shy of its $100 million budget. Law Abiding Citizen dropped to 4th with $12.7 million, and Couples Retreat rounded out the top 5 with an $11.1 million weekend. Read»
Spike Jonze’s Where The Wild Things Are took over the box office this past weekend, grossing an estimated $32.5 million for the top spot in its much-anticipated debut.
The total was a little shy of ambitious estimates after a surprisingly strong Friday and Saturday, but nonetheless is still a strong bow for Warner Bros. It was an uncharacteristically active weekend, with three different films crossing the $20 million mark. You have to go all the way back to 2004’s Shark Tale to find the last time a film managed that in this frame.
Law Abiding Citizen opened at number 2 with $21.3 million, but once again it was Paranormal Activity that comes away with the most impressive victory. Expanding to 760 theaters, the ultra low-budget horror film pulled in $20.2 million for the number 3 spot, or a staggering $26,530 per-theater average in its fourth weekend of release. Couples Retreat held on to fourth place with $17.9 million over its second weekend, and The Stepfather opened in 5th place with a so-so $12.3 million. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, meanwhile, crossed the $100 million mark with an $8.1 million weekend, bringing its total to $108.3 million. Read»
Lots of new trailers again this week! Plus, some other big stories! Read»
