1. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters- $19M
Fairy tale movies continue to be big business, and while H&G didn't exactly break the bank, it's 3D-infused numbers are good enough considering the modest budget. The film was booted up and down the schedule at length before landing on one of the softest weekends of the season. The Jeremy Renner train keeps on rolling, and he can now boast another #1 film onto his impressive recent resume. It's doubtful we'll be seeing any sequels, but then again you never know.
2. Mama- $12.8M/$48.6M
Both Jessica Chastain-led films took a tumble this week, but it was Mama that had the furthest to go. Last week's leader did what all horror movies do, which is take a nosedive as most fans of the genre turn out on opening weekend. The film is still a major hit, having tripled its budget with probably a few more left to go.
3. Silver Linings Playbook- $10M/$69.4M
In its 11th week, Silver Linings Playbook saw its theater count bump up by 118 as The Weinstein Company continues to push it on the way to the Academy Awards. It seems a certainty to hang around until surpassing $100M.
4. Zero Dark Thirty- $9.8M/$69.9M
5. Parker- $7M
Ouch! The irony of this extremely weak opening for Jason Statham's latest is that it continues a trend which started as his films have gotten much better. Last year's Safe did similarly tepid numbers, but this is what happens when all of your stuff is marketed in exactly the same way. Only those who are hardcore Statham fans will turn out. Not even the addition of the once-hot Jennifer Lopez could make a dent, and there was nothing made of this being based on the popular crime novels by Donald Westlake. So an opportunity may have been missed to do something a little different with the Statham brand.
6. Django Unchained- $5M/$146.3M
7. Movie 43- $5M
What's Movie 43, you ask? Why, it's a film that stars practically every celebrity you've come to know and respect, doing hideous, heinous, sexually perverse things that would make you question your past judgement. The sketch comedy with the undefined title has become something of a Hollywood embarrassment, which is probably why there were practically no ads for it, and certainly no publicity interviews. So it was probably through mere curiosity that it even managed to dig up this weak ass opening, and then it will quietly fade into obscurity.
8. Gangster Squad- $4.2M/$39.6M
9. Broken City- $4M/$15.3M
10. Les Miserables- $3.9M/$137.2M
