'My Bloody Valentine 3-D' box office shows young auds are taking to the new format, even at higher tix prices.
The Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend turned into a gold mine for the film biz, led by the $39 million opening of Sony’s "Paul Blart: Mall Cop."
"Mall Cop," toplining Kevin James, scored the second-best January opening after last year’s "Cloverfield," which grossed $46.1 million over the four-day MLK weekend in 2008, according to Rentrak.
The PG-comedy was produced for $26 million. (That doesn’t include coin spent on marketing, which included plenty of TV spots that blanketed NFL and NBA games.) Warner Bros. holdover "Gran Torino" placed No. 2 for the four-day weekend, grossing an estimated $26.2 million from 2,972 screens. The take was not all that far behind the $29.5 million earned the previous weekend as the film went nationwide. Cume is $77.2 million.
Lionsgate’s "My Bloody Valentine 3-D" grossed an estimated $24.2 million from 2,534 in its debut. The real story there was the amount grossed from 3-D screens. All told, 80% of the opening haul — or $19.7 million — came from 1,033 digital 3-D locations thanks to higher ticket prices.
The per-location average for 3-D screens was $19,070; for conventional locations, the average was $2,998.
"Valentine" is seeing the widest digital 3-D release to date. With a load of digital 3-D titles in the pipeline awaiting release — including DreamWorks Animation’s Easter tentpole "Monsters vs. Aliens" — there’s a rush to convert more screens, but the failing economy is making it difficult, if not nearly impossible, for theater owners to secure loans for the conversion.
Lionsgate prexy of distribution Steve Rothenberg said the successful debut of "Valentine" — the first R-rated title, horror or otherwise, to play in digital 3-D — further establishes that moviegoers are willing to pay more for a 3-D title. Young people in particular seem willing, with 72% of "Valentine’s" 3-D aud under age 25.
Coming in a close No. 4 to "Valentine" over the holiday weekend was Fox release "Notorious," which grossed an estimated $24 million from 1,638 runs. A biopic of rap artist Christopher Wallace, aka Notorious B.I.G., the film was produced and marketed by Fox Searchlight.
"Notorious" scored the best per-location average of the entire weekend at $14,652.
"Notorious," like "Mall Cop" and "Valentine," outpaced expectations.
"The marketplace has incredible depth and breadth," said Fox senior VP of distribution Chris Aronson. "There is literally something for everyone."
Paramount’s kiddie comedy "Hotel for Dogs" also overperformed, debuting to $22.5 million from 3,271 theaters for the four-day weekend. Pic, toplining Emma Roberts and Don Cheadle, was produced by DreamWorks. Film placed No. 5 for the holiday.
Holdovers saw slim declines. Fox’s "Bride Wars" came in No. 6, grossing an estimated $14 million over the four-day holiday weekend for a cume of $39.9 million in its second sesh.
Universal/Rogue’s horror pic "The Unborn" landed at No. 7, grossing an estimated $11 million from 2,359 theaters; cume is $34.2 million in its second frame.
Paramount Vantage’s "Defiance" grossed $10.7 million as it expanded nationwide to 1,789 theaters for a cume of $11 million in its third frame.
Fox’s canine dramedy "Marley and Me" took No. 9 in its fourth weekend, grossing an estimated $7.5 million from 2,952 theaters for a boffo cume of $133.9 million.
"Slumdog Millionaire," from Fox Searchlight, came in No. 10, giving the Fox family four films on the top 10 chart. Benefiting handily from its Golden Globe wins, "Slumdog" grossed $7.2 million from 582 theaters over the holiday. Cume is $44 million.
"Slumdog Millionaire," like several other awards contenders, expands nationwide Friday, following the announcement of Oscar nominations Thursday.
Contact Pamela McClintock at
pamela.mcclintock@variety.com