Reservations about the film and its somewhat controversial depiction of lethal sniper Chris Kyle aside, Clint Eastwood's American Sniper destroyed the January records with $90.2M. The film, which stars Bradley Cooper in a performance that is earning him a great amount of Oscars buzz, had been performing extraordinarily well in limited release for three weeks, but nobody could have foreseen an expansion like this. It not only surpasses Ride Along as the top-grossing January film, but is well on the way to becoming Eastwood's highest-grossing movie of his legendary filmmaking career. Military films have had a rough go about it over the last few years but we've seen that recently that starpower can be enough to trump that. Brad Pitt helped lead Fury to a solid $85M domestically ($201M worldwide), and Bradley Cooper's gruff but emotional turn in American Sniper was clearly a big draw, aided by some truly great TV spots.
2. The Wedding Ringer- $21M
It's another solid early-season comedy for the reliable Kevin Hart as buddy comedy The Wedding Ringer opened with $21M. That's a pretty steep drop from last year's Ride Along (which just lost its January record to American Sniper), but it also doesn't have the benefit of Ice Cube in a supporting role. Nothing against Josh Gad but he's no Ice Cube. The $23M production should finish up as another mid-level hit for Hart, and bodes well for his next film Get Hard opposite Will Ferrell. Expect that one to do much better.
3. Paddington- $19.2M
The Weinstein Company has to consider the $19.2M debut of Paddington sweeter than a marmalade sandwich. The CGI/Live-Action film has been earning some terrific reviews, and deservedly so, both in the US and abroad, having earned $141M worldwide already. It also makes for the most successful Nicole Kidman film in what seems like forever. Remember when she was relevant? Anyway, it looks like moving Paddington from its prior Christmas Day slot was a smart choice as it now becomes the first hit family film of 2015.
4. Taken 3- $14M/$62.8M
Last week's champ Taken 3 took a shot to the body and fell 64% in its second weekend, on the way to $14M and $62.8M domestic. But this franchise, which is apparently wrapping up now (yeah right), has done the most damage overseas. The film has gained an additional $64M internationally and should be enough to keep 20th Century Fox plenty happy.
5. Selma- $8.3M/$25.9M
Here's the thing about getting an Oscar bump: a film has to earn enough Oscar nominations to warrant one. Unfortunately, Ava DuVernay's Selma was largely snubbed by the Academy Awards this week, even though it still got slotted for Best Picture. The controversy surrounding that may be enough to propel it further down the line, but for now the film is bumping along at an underwhelming level. Fortunately, the $20M production has already made back back its budget and should see a bump over the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
6. The Imitation Game- $7.1M/$50.7M
7. Into the Woods- $6.5M/$114.2M
8. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies- $4.8M/$244.5M
9. Unbroken- $4.2M/$108.6M
10. Blackhat- $4M
And the first flop of 2015 goes to Michael Mann's techno-thriller Blackhat, which stars Chris Hemsworth as a brawny computer hacker. Apparently nobody wants to watch Thor jabbing away at a keyboard for two hours, and Mann's long since lost his cred as a box office draw. The film does have an international flavor and could perform better internationally, but that is something we'll have to wait and find out.
