Relativity Media’s green screen sword-and-sandals epic Immortals, which stars Henry Cavill (Man of Steel), topped the weekend box office with an estimated $32 million.  While that total was less than half of 300’s $70.9 million debut and well below Clash of the Titan’s $61.2 million, it actually represents the strongest opening from a non-major studio in 2011, and the second best debut for an R-rated 3-D movie ever trailing only Jackass 3-D.  Along with Adam Sandler’s Jack and Jill and holdover Puss in Boots, which both earned $26 million, Immortals pushed the total box office for the weekend up 12% over the same frame last year.

 

Weekend Box Office (Studio Estimates): November 11 - 13, 2011
	Film	Weekend Gross	Screens	Avg./ Screen	Total Gross	Wk#
1	Immortals	$32,000,000	3,112	$10,283	$32,000,000	1
2	Jack and Jill	$26,000,000	3,438	$7,563	$26,000,000	1
3	Puss in Boots	$25,500,000	3,903	$6,533	$108,809,000	3
4	Tower Heist	$13,200,000	3,370	$3,917	$43,900,000	2
5	J. Edgar	$11,470,000	1,910	$6,005	$11,569,000	1
6	A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas	$5,900,000	2,875	$2,052	$23,222,000	2
7	In Time	$4,150,000	2,591	$1,602	$30,667,000	3
8	Paranormal Activity 3	$3,625,000	2,776	$1,306	$100,823,000	4
9	Footloose	$2,735,000	2,215	$1,235	$48,876,000	5
10	Real Steel	$2,000,000	1,758	$1,138	$81,748,000	6

 

Immortals drew an audience that was 60% male, and 75% under the age of 35.  Opening weekend crowds gave the film mediocre “B” CinemaScore, though moviegoers under 25 liked the movie more, giving it a “B+.”  Billed as “from the producers of 300,” Immortals features the same “green screen” special effects technology—and its strong debut should provide additional impetus for the production of the long-awaited sequel to Frank Miller’s 300.

 

Adam Sandler’s Jack and Jill, in which the former Saturday Night Live star plays twins, may or may not end up in second place.  It scored the lowest opening of any Sandler comedy film ever, with the exception of the semi-serious Funny People, which bowed with $22.6 million last year. Still most Sandler comedies open in the summer and this film could develop strong “legs.”  Families made up 53% of the film’s audience, which was slightly female (52%) and slightly older than the norm for the comedian’s efforts (57% 25 and older). Viewers under 18 gave the film an “A-“ CinemaScore, which could indicate better times ahead for the film during the upcoming holidays.

 

Dreamworks’ Puss in Boots slipped just 23% and has now caught up with last November’s Megamind as it has earned $109 million.  It should end up north of $150 million, though competition heats up in the coming weeks with the release of Happy Feet Two, Arthur Christmas, and The Muppets.

 

The comedy caper film Tower Heist slipped just 45% and finished in fourth place with an estimated $13.2 million, just ahead of Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio and which ended up in fifth with an estimated $11.4 million. J. Edgar’s debut was slightly disappointing, but “serious” movies like this warts and all biopic tend to have good legs.  As might be expected a whopping 94% of the film’s audience was over 25, with females making up 54% of the opening weekend crowd.  Working against J. Edgar establishing itself for a long run are reviews (only 41% positive on Rotten Tomatoes) and its mediocre “B” CinemaScore from opening weekend audiences.

 

The stoner holiday film A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas dropped 54.5% and finished sixth in its second weekend, just ahead of the science fiction saga In Time, which slipped 44.5% in its third frame.  Paramount’s Paranormal Activity 3 finished at number 8 and passed the $100 million mark in its fourth weekend.

 

Stop back here next week to check out the box office carnage as the highly anticipated The Twilight Saga: Breaking Down Part I opens along with the heavily-hyped family film Happy Feet 2.