Efron Turns '17 Again' Into No. 1 Hit With $24M

[comedyfreak]

LOS ANGELES - Zac Efron has taken the box-office crown from his Disney teammate Miley Cyrus .

Efron's comedy "17 Again," in which he plays the youthful version of a middle-aged man magically transformed to high school age, debuted as the top weekend movie with $24.1 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The No. 1 opening for the Warner Bros . movie solidifies the big-screen potential for Efron, who rose to fame with Disney's "High School Musical" series.

"There's no question that Zac's a star," said Dan Fellman, head of distribution for Warner Bros. "He's such a hardworking, talented individual. He certainly has given his all to promote this movie."

Universal had the No. 2 movie with Russell Crowe and Ben Affleck's Washington thriller " State of Play ," which pulled in $14.1 million. Crowe plays a reporter investigating a series of deaths linked to an old college friend (Affleck) who's now a rising star in Congress.

Cyrus' " Hannah Montana: The Movie " slipped from first place to fourth with $12.7 million. That lifted the domestic total for Cyrus' movie spinoff of her Disney Channel show to $56.1 million after 10 days in theaters.

"Hannah Montana" finished just behind DreamWorks Animation 's "Monsters vs. Aliens," which took in $12.9 million to raise its domestic haul to $162.7 million. Estimates for "Hannah Montana" and "Monsters vs. Aliens" were close enough that the movies could switch rankings when final numbers are reported Monday.

Jason Statham had a so-so opening for his action sequel "Crank: High Voltage ," which came in at No. 6 with $6.5 million, $4 million less than the first weekend for the 2006 original.

The Lionsgate sequel features Statham in a race to recover his heart, which has been stolen by organ thieves and replaced with a mechanical one.

Hollywood maintained a record box-office pace with just one weekend to go before the busy summer season arrives May 1 with " X-Men Origins: Wolverine ," Hugh Jackman's spinoff of the blockbuster " X-Men " franchise.

Overall revenues were at $112 million, up nearly 20 percent from the same weekend last year, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers.

For the year, Media By Numbers is tracking receipts at $2.92 billion, 17.3 percent ahead of 2008's and well above the box-office pace of 2007, when Hollywood took in a record $9.7 billion. Accounting for higher ticket prices, movie attendance this year is up 15.6 percent compared to last year's.

The movie business is poised to top $10 billion at the box office for the first time in 2009, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media By Numbers.

"It's going to be a record year, because we've never had a start to a year this strong," Dergarabedian said. "Unless the world goes off its axis and spins into the sun, I don't see how we're not going to have a $10 billion year."

Weekend Box Office Estimates (U.S.)
This Wk Last Wk Title Dist. Weekend Gross Cumulative
Gross Rlse
Wks # of
Theaters
1 - 17 Again Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution $24,065,000 $24,065,000 1 3255
2 - State of Play Universal Pictures $14,099,000 $14,099,000 1 2803
3 3 Monsters vs. Aliens Paramount Pictures $12,900,000 $162,723,000 4 3662
4 1 Hannah Montana The Movie Buena Vista Pictures Distribution $12,666,000 $56,133,000 2 3118
5 2 Fast & Furious Universal Pictures $12,290,000 $136,721,000 3 3674
6 - Crank High Voltage Lionsgate, Lakeshore International $6,510,000 $6,510,000 1 2223
7 4 Observe and Report Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution $4,055,000 $18,692,000 2 2727
8 5 Knowing Summit Entertainment, LLC $3,478,000 $73,699,000 5 2405
9 6 I Love You, Man Paramount Pictures $3,370,000 $64,657,000 5 2202
10 7 The Haunting in Connecticut Lionsgate $3,150,000 $51,918,000 4 2255
11 8 Dragonball Evolution 20th Century Fox $1,575,000 $7,825,000 2 2181
12 9 Adventureland Miramax Films $1,291,000 $14,024,000 3 1412

[Jude The Obscure]

Disappointing for Jason Statham.....will he ever break out as a mainstream box office attraction?

[comedyfreak]

Crank wasn't that great, seen it tonight and you need to be on crank to enjoy it, LOL. It was weird.

[Jude The Obscure]

ahhhhhhh, word of mouth must have gotten around......it is sinking fast!
I think Jason needs to get into some more mainstream bigger budget flicks that will really put him over!

[comedyfreak]

Originally Posted by Jude The Obscure

ahhhhhhh, word of mouth must have gotten around......it is sinking fast!
I think Jason needs to get into some more mainstream bigger budget flicks that will really put him over!

Exactly, he did well in The Bank Job.

[Jude The Obscure]

That one required him to uhmmmmm, actually act