Monday, July 12, 2010

'Despicable Me' tallies astounding $60 million opening

By Nicole Sperling, EW.com
July 12, 2010 -- Updated 1841 GMT (0241 HKT)

(EW.com) -- Being mean has worked! For "Despicable Me" earned an estimated $60.1 million for the weekend, proving, yet again, that animated flicks are not just for kids.

And it, along with "Toy Story 3," will be two of summer's biggest success stories.

The other new wide release, "Predators" starring Adrian Brody, earned an estimated $25.3 million for the weekend -- above expectations and better than the majority of other "Predator" movies released over the last 23 years.

The performances of these two films plus the strong holds of "Toy Story," "Twilight Saga: Eclipse" and "Grown Ups" helped boost the box office up a remarkable 40 percent over last year at this time when Bruno opened to $30.6 million.

"Despicable Me" earned a solid A from audiences, according to exit pollster CinemaScore. The same cannot be said for "Predators," which only received a C+ from the exit pollster.

In contrast, "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse," which audiences love, lost 49 percent of its value the second weekend, better than "New Moon" did its third weekend in theaters. The film added $33.3 million to its coffers, for a second place finish. The David Slade-directed flick's total gross now stands at $237 million. (The film still trails "New Moon" by $18 million but with a better hold perhaps its staying power will outweigh its predecessor in the end.)

"Toy Story 3" nabbed the fourth slot, falling only 27 percent for the weekend despite the stiff competition from "Despicable Me." The film's total gross stands at $340 million, beating "Finding Nemo" and becoming Pixar's top-grossing film in the company's history.

Rounding out the top five is "The Last Airbender." The M. Night Shyamalan-directed flick lost 57 percent of its value, expected considering how well it opened last frame. The film, based on the popular Nickelodeon anime series, now has a gross of $100 million. The studio will wait to determine whether to green light a sequel til the international grosses begin rolling in, in the next month.

"Grown Ups" performed exceedingly well its third weekend in theaters. The Adam Sandler-starrer dropped only 14 percent for a weekend gross of $16.4 million. The film's total gross now stands at $111 million, marking Sandler's 11th film to cross the box office milestone in the past 12 years.

"Knight & Day" took spot seven, also with an incredible hold. The Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz-starrer earned $7.8 million, falling 25 percent for the weekend. The film's three-week gross totals close to $62 million.

Spot eight went to "The Karate Kid," the Sony picture that keeps on luring audiences. Falling only 29 percent its fifth weekend for another $5.7 million in box office, the movie's total gross stands at $164.6 million.

"The A-Team" landed in the ninth spot with $1.8 million added to its total cume of close to $74 million. "Cyrus" nabbed the tenth spot. The indie flick from Fox Searchlight grossed $1.3 million in 200 theaters -- its widest release yet. Starring Jonah Hill and John C. Reilly, "Cyrus's" total gross now stands at $3.5 million.

In limited release, "The Kids Are All Right" opened to $504,888 in only seven theaters for an average of $72,127. The well-reviewed flick from Lisa Cholodenko (Laurel Canyon) is prime Oscar bait and will expand in the coming weeks.


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