The box-office numbers for the US movie-going weekend are in and the figures are excellent for a certain new movie based on the beloved Dr Seuss book THE LORAX. The film, which features the voices of Danny DeVito, Ed Helms and Zac Efron, made an estimated $70.7 million in box-office green for Universal on home soil for the three-day weekend from 3,729 screens in North America. The budget of the film was around the $70 million mark, so the film is already into profit territory, bar the added promotional costs which always have to be added on top of the initial cost of making the film. THE LORAX easily hit the number one spot with those figures, followed by the found-footage comedy PROJECT X from producer Todd Phillips. The teen comedy made $20.7 million from a speculated budget of around $12 million, a definite hit for Warner Brothers.
Dropping from last week’s number one spot to number three on the US chart is ACT OF VALOR, bringing in another $13.7 over the three days and $45.2 in total for the combat set film featuring real soldiers of war. That film hits the UK later this month and it will interesting to see how the film performs over here to a much different audience. It’s out on the 23rd March, putting it up against the likes of THE HUNGER GAMES and WILD BILL, a low-budgeted Brit flick garnering some superb word of mouth.
At four this week sees SAFE HOUSE, the South Africa set actioner starring Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds. The three day take for the film was $7.2 million, putting it slightly above TYLER PERRY’S GOOD DEEDS which took an estimated $7 million over the weekend.
What is interesting on the chart is Sony’s THE VOW, the romantic comedy that has managed to become the highest grossing film of 2012 so far with $111 million in the bank from an estimated $30 million budget. A huge hit for Screen Gems and its parent company Sony.
Here’s the top ten in full. It will be interesting to see how next week’s big opener JOHN CARTER affects things come this time next week. It has a huge budget (said to be north of $250 million), and has to take at least double that to turn a profit, so they say… THN will bring you the news just as soon as the info becomes available.
We’ll bring you the UK top ten, with the news as to how UK new releases, THIS MEANS WAR, WANDERLUST and PROJECT X performed over the weekend on Tuesday evening, and of course on the podcast on Friday…
1 The Lorax $70.7 M
2 Project X $20.7 M
3 Act of Valor $13.7, M $45.2 M
4 Safe House $7.2 M, $108.2 M
5 Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds $7 M, $25.7 M
6 Journey 2: The Mysterious Island $6.9 M, $85.6 M
7 The Vow $6.1 M, $111 M
8 This Means War $5.6 M $41.4 M
9 Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance $4.7 M, $44.8 M
10 The Artist $3.9 M, $37 M
