Box office report
The “Thunder” roared over the weekend, so for the first time in a month, “The Dark Knight” is not at the top of the box office report.
The DreamWorks-Paramount comedy “Tropic Thunder” - starring Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Jack Black and a widely praised Tom Cruise cameo - opened at No. 1 with $26 million, according to the Associated Press.
With $16.8 million, “The Dark Knight” swooped to second place after an incredible four weekends at No. 1.
A sharp satire of the movie business, “Tropic Thunder” became the third R-rated comedy to post a decent opening in the past few weeks, after “Pineapple Express” and “Step Brothers.” Earlier this season, the “Sex in the City” movie set a record for the best-ever debut for an R-rated comedy with its $55.7 million domestic opening.
Studios often prefer summer comedies that are PG-13, since an R requires anyone younger than 17 to come with an adult.
R-rated comedy hits typically open with $20 million to $30 million, according to the AP. Their openings might be more modest than the PG-13 variety, but they often build word of mouth and bigger grosses over time.
“We’re thrilled, quite frankly. It played out exactly how we hoped,” DreamWorks spokesman Chip Sullivan told the AP.
“Tropic Thunder” actually opened last Wednesday, and it made $37 million over five days.
With the added $16.8 million, ”The Dark Knight” boosted its box office take to $471.5 million. The “Batman Begins” sequel has officially passed the original “Star Wars” ($461 million).
It is now No. 2 on the all-time domestic box office list, behind only “Titanic” ($600.8 million). But when you account for inflation and increased admission prices, “The Dark Knight” actually lags well behind “Titanic” and “Star Wars” as far as the number of actual tickets sold.
Dan Fellman, Warner Bros. head of distribution, said he anticipates “The Dark Knight” will cap at about $530 million domestically.
Warner Bros. was competing against itself – and another entry in the “Star Wars” franchise - over the weekend. The animated prequel “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” debuted with $15.5 million to land in the No. 3 spot.
Fellman told the AP that families made up two-thirds of the viewership for “Clone Wars,” which is good news, since the movie is a sort of preview of a Cartoon Network animated series set to debut this fall.
“It was targeted to a specific audience for specific reasons,” Fellman told the AP. “We accomplished that mission, and it will continue in another medium.”
In fourth place was the 20th Century Fox not-screened-for-critics horror tale “Mirrors.” The Kiefer Sutherland vehicle opened with $11.1 million. Considering its horror movie status, its theatrical success will probably be short-lived.
Venerable director Woody Allen garnered decent commercial returns along with strong reviews for his Spanish love square (as opposed to triangle) “Vicky Cristina Barcelona.” It opened at No. 10 with $3.7 million.
The movie was a wider release than most of Allen’s films, but it still opened in just 692 theaters - compared to 3,000-plus for “Tropic Thunder” and “Clone Wars,” according to the AP.
“You never can predict how something’s going to do, but we felt that the movie is so strong, we just needed to get it out there,” Harvey Weinstein, whose Weinstein Co. released the movie, told the AP. “The audience reaction is terrific.”
The 3D animated movie “Fly Me to the Moon,” produced and distributed by indie studio Summit Entertainment, opened in 452 theaters, according to the AP. The insect tale buzzed up $2 million in business, coming in at No. 12 on the box office charts.
Here’s the weekend’s top 10 movies, as reported by the AP:
1. “Tropic Thunder,” $26 million.
2. “The Dark Knight,” $16.8 million.
3. “Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” $15.5 million.
4. “Mirrors,” $11.1 million.
5. “Pineapple Express,” $10 million.
6. “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor,” $8.6 million.
7. “Mamma Mia!”, $6.5 million.
8. “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2,” $5.9 million.
9. “Step Brothers,” $5 million.
10. “Vicky Cristina Barcelona,” $3.7 million.
-BAM
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