Despite football getting in the way, Contraband was actually something males could get excited about. The R-rated film earned $24.3 million over the three-day weekend ($8,505 average from 2,863 theaters) and $28.5 million over the extended period. It was the seventh-highest opening of star Mark Wahlberg's career, and kicked off distributor Universal Pictures' 100th year in film business on a high note, opening higher than analysts and studio expectations, which had predicted a four-day opening in the high-teens millions. While it earned mainly negative critical reception, it earned an "A-" CinemaScore grade and has already become a success as it was produced for just $25 million.
While it wasn't able to get the top spot, Beauty and the Beast (3D) still returned to theaters with great numbers. Despite already being on DVD and Blu-ray, the re-release of the animated classic earned $17.8 million over the three-day frame ($6,763 average from 2,625 3D-equipped theaters, with few 2D showtimes, 97% of ticket sales were 3D showtimes) and $22.2 million over the extended holiday (it was overestimated on Monday). That was less than two-thirds of The Lion King's $30.2 million opening, but was higher than the Toy Story/Toy Story 2 double-feature's $12.5 million start and claimed the opening weekend record for an animated film released in January (Hoodwinked! originally had the record at a $16.9 million four-day opening). This number proves that there is still high interest in old films being re-released in the format, and Beauty is the first of four classic favorites returning to theaters this year in 3-D (Star Wars Episode I, Titanic, and Finding Nemo follow later in the year). Audiences gave it an "A+" grade, indicating that the classic is still beloved by many and won over first-time watchers.
Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol slid one spot to third and continued holding well with a 41% ease to $11.7 million over the three-day and $14.2 million over the extended frame, for a strong $189.4 million tally in one month of release. Its' surpassed the gross of the original Mission: Impossible and is ahead of II's gross through the same point. It also has broken the $500 million barrier worldwide.
Meanwhile, in fourth place, musical comedy Joyful Noise opened in line with expectations. Starring Queen Latifah and the legendary Dolly Parton, the film earned $11.2 million over the three-day period ($4,104 average from 2,735 theaters) and $13.8 million over the extended weekend. It opened in line with 2010's star-studded musical comedy Burlesque, and was the biggest-grossing film starring Latifah in the last five years (excluding the Ice Age films). The film recieved negative reception from critics, but was given an "A-" CinemaScore grade from audiences, and was produced for around $30 million, a number that it should be able to reach domestically.
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows retreated to the fifth spot after being a step behind Mission: Impossible the last few weeks. The sequel continued to hold well with a 37% ease to $8.6 million over the three-day and $10.4 million over the four-day, for a $172 million tally in one month of release and is continuing to close the gap between it and its' predecessor. After topping last weekend, The Devil Inside fell to sixth place with a disastrous 76% drop to $8 million over the three-day and $9 million over the four-day, for an 11-day total of a good $47.4 million. While that was harsher than analysts were thinking, it isn't entirely unexpected since the film has seen overwhelmingly negative word-of-mouth. But, its' still going to be a huge hit with nearly $60 million by the time it leaves theaters, which would give it the biggest gross for a non-sequel horror film since the original Paranormal Activity.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which was nominated for a couple of Golden Globes, slid to the seventh spot with a 41% ease to $6.7 million over three days and $8 million over four, for a $89.2 million tally in 27 days. Also nominated for a couple of Golden Globes, Steven Spielberg's War Horse eased a Top 10-best 32% to $5.9 million in eighth place over the three-day and $7.4 million over the four-day (which had it in 10th place on that chart) for a $69.3 million tally in 22 days.
Although it was outside the Top 10 on Friday, Alvin & The Chipmunks: Chipwrecked rebounded solidly over the weekend, finishing just $30,000 behind Horse for ninth place on the three-day with $5.9 million, down 38%, and finishing just $30,000 behind Dragon Tattoo for eighth place on the four-day with $8 million, for a $121 million tally in one month of release. We Bought A Zoo rounded out the Top 10 for the three-day with a 33% ease to $5.6 million, and $7.4 million over the four-day, ranking ninth on that chart ($19,000 ahead of War Horse on that front) and has earned $65.9 million in 24 days.
Outside the Top 10, The Iron Lady, which earned star Meryl Streep Best Actress at the Golden Globes, expanded to wide release and earned $5.4 million over the three-day ($6,749 average from just 802 theaters) and $6.6 million over the four-day. It is expected to continue expanding throughout the rest of awards season. The Adventures of Tintin, which won the Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature, eased 40% to $4 million on the three-day and $5.6 million on the four-day, for a $69.3 million tally in 26 days.
Overall box office for the 4-day weekend was up 2.5% from last year when Seth Rogen superhero action comedy The Green Hornet debuted to modest results with $33.5 million over the three-day and $40 million over the extended weekend. The film would go on to gross just under $100 million domestically and $220 million worldwide. Kevin James and Vince Vaughn debuted in second place with The Dilemma, which started off with a whimper with $17.8 million in three days and $20.5 million in four, on its' way to close to $50 million stateside. True Grit slid to the third position with a 25% ease to $11 million in three days and $13.1 million in four while major Golden Globe winner The King's Speech jumped from ninth to fourth place with $9.2 million in three days and $11.3 million in four days. Black Swan, another major Golden Globe winner, held onto the fifth position with a 3% bump to $8.3 million in three days and $10.3 million in four.
Here is the final Top 12 for the three-day and four-day:
3-Day Weekend:
# Movie Actual Gross Projected Estimate My Prediction
1 Contraband $24,349,815 $24,000,000 $9,500,000
2 Beauty and the Beast (3D) $17,751,905 $18,500,000 $13,000,000
3 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol $11,686,617 $11,400,000 $12,500,000
4 Joyful Noise $11,225,190 $11,400,000 $11,000,000
5 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows $8,592,657 $8,400,000 $8,500,000
6 The Devil Inside $8,028,439 $7,900,000 $11,800,000
7 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo $6,660,907 $6,800,000 $8,000,000
8 War Horse $5,923,128 $5,500,000 $5,600,000
9 Alvin & The Chipmunks: Chipwrecked $5,893,831 $5,800,000 $6,500,000
10 We Bought A Zoo $5,560,781 $4,800,000 $5,000,000
11 The Iron Lady $5,412,934 $5,400,000 ---
12 The Adventures of Tintin $4,035,024 $4,000,000 ---
4-Day Weekend:
# Movie Actual Gross Projected Estimate My Prediction
1 Contraband $28,515,480 $28,800,000 $12,500,000
2 Beauty and the Beast (3D) $22,213,922 $23,500,000 $17,000,000
3 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol $14,201,823 $14,200,000 $15,500,000
4 Joyful Noise $13,802,308 $13,800,000 $14,000,000
5 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows $10,444,071 $10,600,000 $11,000,000
6 The Devil Inside $9,034,861 $9,000,000 $14,000,000
7 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo $8,032,763 $8,000,000 $10,000,000
8 Alvin & The Chipmunks: Chipwrecked $8,002,573 $7,800,000 $9,000,000
9 We Bought A Zoo $7,369,231 $6,900,000 $7,000,000
10 War Horse $7,350,537 $6,700,000 $7,500,000
11 The Iron Lady $6,628,448 $6,700,000 ---
12 The Adventures of Tintin $5,624,780 $5,200,000 ---
