JamesG
02-19-2012, 09:17 PM
Weekend Report: Safe House Secures Presidents Day Lead
by Ray Subers
February 19, 2012
After finishing in third on Friday, Safe House played well on Saturday and edged past The Vow and the disappointing Ghost Rider sequel to claim first place for the first three days of Presidents Day Weekend.
Journey 2 had a great hold in fourth, while This Means War opened decently in fifth.
The Top 12 earned an estimated $144 million, which is an 11 percent improvement from the same weekend last year.
Safe House was off 40 percent to an estimated $24 million.
Through 10 days the movie has made $78.3 million, which ranks second among Denzel Washington movies behind American Gangster ($80.4 million).
Safe House is currently on pace to easily exceed $100 million, making it just the fourth Denzel movie ever to reach that level.
In its second outing, The Vow fell 43 percent to an estimated $23.6 million. That's a very solid hold given that the movie has already raked in tons of money between its huge opening weekend and its impressive Valentine's Day performance.
On Sunday, The Vow will pass Dear John ($80 million) to become Sony/Screen Gem's highest-grossing movie ever, and its total is expected to reach $85.5 million.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance flamed out this weekend with a meek $22 million start at 3,174 locations (2,352 of which showed the movie in 3D).
That opening is less than half the three-day start of the original Ghost Rider on the same weekend in 2007 ($45.4 million), which is a nearly unprecedented drop for a sequel.
An abundance of factors contributed to Ghost Rider's decline.
While Nicolas Cage has been getting away with the over-the-top shtick for a while now, his star has faded in recent years with an abundance of bizarre and disappointing projects like The Sorcerer's Apprentice, Season of the Witch and Drive Angry.
More important than Cage, though, is the fact that audiences probably weren't all that interested in a sequel to Ghost Rider in the first place.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance's audience was 61 percent male and 48 percent under the age of 25, and there is not currently a CinemaScore available.
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3373&p=.htm
February 17-19, 2012 Weekend Studio Estimates:
1. Safe House $24,000,000 / $78,300,000
2. The Vow $23,600,000 / $85,527,000
3. Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance $22,000,000
4. Journey 2: The Mysterious Island $20,085,000 / $53,201,000
5. This Means War $17,550,000
6. Star Wars - Episode I: The Phantom Menace (3D) $7,865,000 / $33,738,000
7. Chronicle $7,500,000 / $50,979,000
8. The Woman in Black $6,645,000 / $45,256,000
9. The Secret World of Arrietty $6,400,000
10. The Grey $3,032,000 / $47,925,000
by Ray Subers
February 19, 2012
After finishing in third on Friday, Safe House played well on Saturday and edged past The Vow and the disappointing Ghost Rider sequel to claim first place for the first three days of Presidents Day Weekend.
Journey 2 had a great hold in fourth, while This Means War opened decently in fifth.
The Top 12 earned an estimated $144 million, which is an 11 percent improvement from the same weekend last year.
Safe House was off 40 percent to an estimated $24 million.
Through 10 days the movie has made $78.3 million, which ranks second among Denzel Washington movies behind American Gangster ($80.4 million).
Safe House is currently on pace to easily exceed $100 million, making it just the fourth Denzel movie ever to reach that level.
In its second outing, The Vow fell 43 percent to an estimated $23.6 million. That's a very solid hold given that the movie has already raked in tons of money between its huge opening weekend and its impressive Valentine's Day performance.
On Sunday, The Vow will pass Dear John ($80 million) to become Sony/Screen Gem's highest-grossing movie ever, and its total is expected to reach $85.5 million.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance flamed out this weekend with a meek $22 million start at 3,174 locations (2,352 of which showed the movie in 3D).
That opening is less than half the three-day start of the original Ghost Rider on the same weekend in 2007 ($45.4 million), which is a nearly unprecedented drop for a sequel.
An abundance of factors contributed to Ghost Rider's decline.
While Nicolas Cage has been getting away with the over-the-top shtick for a while now, his star has faded in recent years with an abundance of bizarre and disappointing projects like The Sorcerer's Apprentice, Season of the Witch and Drive Angry.
More important than Cage, though, is the fact that audiences probably weren't all that interested in a sequel to Ghost Rider in the first place.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance's audience was 61 percent male and 48 percent under the age of 25, and there is not currently a CinemaScore available.
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3373&p=.htm
February 17-19, 2012 Weekend Studio Estimates:
1. Safe House $24,000,000 / $78,300,000
2. The Vow $23,600,000 / $85,527,000
3. Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance $22,000,000
4. Journey 2: The Mysterious Island $20,085,000 / $53,201,000
5. This Means War $17,550,000
6. Star Wars - Episode I: The Phantom Menace (3D) $7,865,000 / $33,738,000
7. Chronicle $7,500,000 / $50,979,000
8. The Woman in Black $6,645,000 / $45,256,000
9. The Secret World of Arrietty $6,400,000
10. The Grey $3,032,000 / $47,925,000