In a surprising development, Dreamworks' animated Mr. Peabody & Sherman has jumped to the head of the class with $21.2M, only slipping 33% from last week. Part of that has to do with a weak crop of new releases, coinciding with 300: Rise of an Empire taking an epic tumble. Still, it has to make Dreamworks happy that the film has earned more than $130M worldwide in only two weeks.
2. 300: Rise of an Empire- $19.1M/$78.1M
This..is...Sparta....falling off a cliff. The 58% drop by 300: Rise of an Empire is stiffer than Zack Snyder's 300, and the film is unlikely to match its overall total. It continues to perform well, overall, amassing $166M and increasing our chances of seeing one more battle in the Persian War.
3. Need for Speed- $17.8M
Dreamworks occupies two of the top three slots this week, but there's no denying Need for Speed's $17.8M is a disappointment. The live-action racer probably drew in those who eagerly snap up the bestselling video game while everybody else just saw it as Fast & Furious lite. Breaking Bad's Aaron Paul now falls into the same category as Pompeii star Kit Harington as TV actors not quite ready for the Hollywood major leagues. Fortunately, $45M in overseas box office should go a long way in calming the nerves of anxious studio bean counters.
4. Non-Stop- $10.6M/$68.8M
5. Tyler Perry's The Single Moms Club- $8.3M
It's been diminishing returns on Tyler Perry movies, especially non-Madea ones, for awhile now which explains why Lionsgate ended their distribution deal with him. And now to follow that news up with the dreadful $8.3M debut of The Single Moms Club, things just aren't looking very good for Perry. It's the worst of his career and the first time he's had a sub-$10M opening weekend, and a lot of it has to do with a general lack of buzz surrounding the film. It's a knock on both Perry and co-star Nia Long that their names, and apparent on-screen romance, didn't prove much of a draw.
6. The LEGO Movie- $7.7M/$236.9M
7. Son of God- $5.4M/$50.8M
8. The Grand Budapest Hotel- $3.6M/$4.7M
Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel broke per site average records last week, and upon expansion to 66 theaters it continues to scorch. Averaging more than $55K in its second weekend, it expands into wider release soon. With an additional $10M earned internationally, there's a good chance it matches the $68M run of last year's Moonrise Kingdom.
9. Frozen- $2.1M/$396.3M
10. Veronica Mars- $2.02M
And the marshmallows turned out in force to support their girl, Veronica Mars. Seven years after the low-rated but beloved series went off the air, the Kickstarter funded film opened in 291 theaters and On Demand. It's a move that has never been attempted before on this scale, with Warner Bros. going through great pains to get the film in as many theaters as possible. Obviously, it worked out as the $2M makes a major dent in the tiny $6M budget, and that doesn't count what the movie will make through digital downloads and Blu-Ray sales. If show creator Rob Thomas can keep the costs low this could be the model for sequels down the road.
