May 27 2009
Stiller and Company Defeat Bale in Box Office “Battle”
Ben Stiller (in a scene with Alain Chabat) yet again delivered a robust weekend at the box office with his Night at the Museum sequel, Battle of the Smithsonian. The family adventure grossed $70 million over the Memorial Day weekend. (image courtesy of AP/Twentieth Century Fox)
The Terminator failed to flex its box office muscles large enough to overtake Ben Stiller’s Night at the Museum sequel at U.S. and Canadian theaters this weekend.
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian grossed $54.17 million at 4,096 theaters over the weekend ($70.05 million factoring in Memorial Day), compared to Terminator Salvation’s $42.6 million ($51.9 million for four days). Since its opening last Thursday, Salvation has grossed $65.3 million.
Both sequels fared well in comparison to their predecesssors’ opening weekends. Smithsonian whi improved markedly over the first Night, which grossed $30.4 million upon opening in December 2006. The first Arnold Schwarzenegger-less Terminator film, Salvation- starring Christian Bale- opened in line with 2003’s Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, which pulled in $44.04 million in its premiere weekend. However, T3’s opening gross translates to roughly $52.4 million in today’s dollars.
Both franchise films will be hard-pressed to match the success of prior films- the first Museum concluded its run with $250.86 million, while T3 finished with $150.37 million ($179 million, adjusted for inflation). Furthermore, in 2009 dollars, 1991’s Terminator 2 has grossed $349.35 million.
Finishing third over the weekend, Star Trek continued its sizzling success. Through Memorial Day, the franchise reboot has grossed $191 million, and, with Tuesday’s box office results, will dethrone Monsters Vs. Aliens as the year’s top-grossing film. Monsters spent a ninth week inside the top 10, and has earned $193.7 million through Monday’s close of business.
Last week’s number one film- Angels & Demons- dropped to fourth place, and has collected $87.5 million to date. The Tom Hanks vehicle likely will not match the $217.5 million earned by 2006’s The Da Vinci Code.
Another franchise release, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, claimed sixth place over the long weekend, bringing its cume to $165.16 million. While Wolverine has outgrossed 2000’s X Men in hard dollars, when adjusting for inflation, the original film’s gross rises to $209.5 million. 2003’s X2: X-Men United earned $214.95 million ($255.94 adjusted), while 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand remains the top grosser, with $234.36 million ($256.9 million adjusted).
Aside from the top two films, the only other major release was the Wayans Brothers-written Dance Flick, which scored a mild fifth-place debut, with $12.62 million in its first four days. The Brothers’ nephew, Damien, directed the parody, which also co-stars several members of the Wayans clan.
Next weekend, the Disney/Pixar animated feature Up will try to topple Battle of the Smithsonian, while horror flick Drag Me to Hell tries to- ahem- scare up some boffo business. As long as Battle dips by at least 50 percent, Up should have little trouble towering above its competition, leaving all other films looking UP from below the No. 1 slot. Talk about living UP to one’s title…
