Twentieth Century Fox’s latest re-boot of The Planet of the
Apes franchise is neither a sequel nor a prequel but it does have the built in
brand recognition from the original series of films spawned from the 1968
sci-fi classic starring Charlton Heston.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes featuring James Franco is a fresh
interpretation of the original series of films and has no connection to Fox’s
2001 Planet of the Apes re-boot which starred Mark Wahlberg. There was no monkeying around with these apes
as they climbed to the top of the chart with a much bigger-than-expected $54
million this weekend. The film was also
a hit internationally earning $23.4 million in just 25 markets and took first
place in 9 of 11 markets (where rankings are available). The film expands in 15 new markets next
weekend.
Sony Pictures Animation’s The Smurfs in 3-D nearly made some
cantankerous cowboys very blue last weekend when they rustled up an unexpected
tie for first place with Cowboys & Aliens.
When the dust settled the little blue dudes landed in a close second
place finish for the weekend, but led the midweek box office race and now have
a higher North American gross than their high profile competitor. A very strong 41% second weekend hold gives
the film $21 million for Friday through Sunday and a domestic gross of over $75
million. In just 10 days the film has
generated $128.9 million worldwide with $52.7 million from the overseas
markets.
The Universal/DreamWorks co-production of Cowboys &
Aliens took the number one spot last weekend after a fierce battle against the
tenacious Smurfs, but landed in third place with $15.7 million in this, its
second weekend. Directed by Jon Favreau
and boasting an impressive talent roster both in front of and behind the
camera, the film will finish the weekend with around $67 million.
The sixth R-rated comedy to hit theaters this summer and the
second starring the ubiquitous Jason Bateman, Universal’s The Change-Up
co-starring Ryan Reynolds puts a new spin on an old twist with a debut gross of
$13.5 million. From Freaky Friday to 17
Again and countless films in between, this time the formula gets the R-rated
treatment and The Change-Up capitalized on solid date crowd appeal this
weekend.
Fifth place played host to three potential contenders with
Paramount’s Captain America: The First Avenger coming out on top with $13
million. Warner Bros.’ Harry Potter and
the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 and PG-13 rated comedy Crazy, Stupid, Love. were
close behind with $12.2 million and $12.1 million respectively.
Good news for the industry with a solid month of up-trending
box office that puts the summer-to-date revenue advantage 4.39% ahead of last
year and attendance up by just over 2%.
Specialized film spotlight:
After premiering at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, the
critical favorite Bellflower (Dist. by Oscilloscope Films) had its theatrical
debut this weekend on 2 screens and performed well with a solid $28,000 for the
weekend (including many sold-out shows).
The film was also a hit at SXSW back in March and has gotten rave
reviews from every major news outlet with each praising its innovative
storytelling, unique visual style and terrific performances from the up and
coming cast. Be sure to check out
Bellflower directed by Evan Glodell as it expands to over 500 theaters through
August and into September. I spoke with
one of the producers and stars of the film Vincent Grashaw this morning and he
seemed thrilled with the results and is looking forward to the expanded release
of the film in the coming weeks.
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