The box office results for November 26th-28th sees Deathly Hallows pulling off a narrow victory against an old fairy tale. By doing so, Potter is at the top for the second weekend in a row. Meanwhile, an abundance of new release all come out strong during the Thanksgiving holiday. Here are the studio estimates:

1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows ($50.3 million)

2. Tangled ($49.1 million)

3. Megamind ($12.9 million)

4. Burlesque ($11.8 million)

5. Unstoppable ($11.7 million)

6. Love and Other Drugs ($9.8 million)

7. Faster ($8.7 million)

8. Due Date ($7.3 million)

9. The Next Three Days ($4.8 million)

10. Morning Glory ($4 million)

Analysis

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows became the fourth Potter flick to repeat as box office champ in its second weekend. Based on the astronomical totals this franchise has posted this past decade, one would think that would happen more frequently. The $50 million mark is in the ball park where just about all the Harry Potter flicks have landed after strong openings on either a Wednesday and/or Friday release day. However, the one abnormal statistic is this Potter flick dropped 60%. Attribute this drop from last weekend due to the strong showing the flick had on Wednesday and Thursday, during the Thanksgiving festivities. The seventh wizard adventure is up to $220 million domestically and well over $400 million worldwide.

Tangled seems to be off to a decent start for Walt Disney Pictures. When factoring in the crowded theaters on Thanksgiving Day, the studio’s 50th animation has grossed $69 million domestically. With all that said, this fairy tale may not have a happy (profitable) ending. After taking over six years to produce, the studio rang up a production bill of a reported $260 million! What is this…A Guns N’ Roses “Chinese Democracy” album? Theatrically, this flick has no shot at making any money for the studio. They’re going to need an amazing DVD and On Demand run to see any profits. Talk about wishing upon a star.

Musicals haven’t performed very well over the last few years in theaters and Burlesque is probably not going to break that streak. Since opening on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, the flick is just over $16 million. Not bad for a flick that the lovely critics have modestly panned. The main concern for Sony/Screen Gems is this flashy production cost $55 million. So this needs to reach around $80 million for the studio to fill in the bottom line with black ink. Look for this to drop fast next weekend.

Breaking even at the theater isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and the producers behind Love and Other Drugs should be thrilled to hear that. Sporting a production budget of $30 million, this flick will be fortunate to reach that total during its theatrical run. Do not be surprised if this flick gets a small jolt during the week though. Critics aren’t overly thrilled with this flick yet Anne Hathaway’s performance is garnering lots of attention. Expect to see a Basic Instinct like anomaly here. Although this flick isn’t as attractive as the 1992 hit, the leading lady sure was. Sharon Stone’s performance (nakedness) drew tons of attention. Now that the word is out that Anne Hathaway follows in her footsteps in the lack-of-clothing department, look for a possible surge in males seeking out this flick. Then again, it’s probably already on the internet so it seems that 20th Fox will have to rely on the DVD and On Demand run either way.

Finally, Dwayne Johnson has found his way back into an action piece with Faster. Problem is, the flick came in on a heavy release day, where one usually sees the family flicks dominate. The lackluster start didn’t deal CBS Films the fatal blow their prior releases have this year. By splitting the $24 million budget with Sony Pictures, the new studio may see their first box office breakeven. Which at this point, has to be considered a moral victory. Faster is halfway there with a domestic total of just under $12 million. Next weekend will spell out this flick’s – and possibly the studios – future.

Due Date and Megamind currently have the longest streak in the top ten with 4 weeks. Due Date has grossed $84 million domestically bringing its worldwide total to $142 million. Warner Bros. is definitely seeing profits off its $65 million production budget. Megamind only dropped 20% from last weekend and brought its domestic total up to $131 million, which matches the attached production budget. Factoring in the foreign market, the worldwide total for the DreamWorks Animated piece is at $155 million.

Flop Alert: The Next Three Days. Real simple (unlike the flick’s plot)…$14 million gross thus far (domestic and foreign)…$35 million production budget. Thanks for playing Lionsgate. Sleeper Hit: No true candidate this week. If one looks outside the top ten, 127 Hours could have a shot if Fox Searchlight decides to keep increasing its theater count. So far it is playing in less than 300 theaters and has grossed over $4 million. The production budget was $18 million.

This Friday it will be a limited release party save for one flick. Opening wide is the modern-western The Warrior’s Way. The limited release bunch is highlighted by the buzz-worthy Black Swann and I Love You Phillip Morris. Coming in from Finland is Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale.

Tangled
Tangled

By Joe Belcastro

Joe Belcastro is an established movie critic in Tampa, Florida. As a member of the Florida Film Critics Circle, most of his time is spent reviewing upcoming movies. He also covers news pertaining to the film industry, on both a local and national level as well as conducting interviews. To contact Joe Belcastro regarding a story or with general questions about his services, please e-mail him and/or follow him on Twiiter @TheWritingDemon.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *