New Releases Take the Top Four Spots

Sony’s Elysium took first place last weekend with $29.81 million. The Neill Blomkamp directed sci-fi film starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster opened quite similar to the $27.06 million start of 2 Guns the previous weekend, with the major difference being that Elysium was significantly more expensive than 2 Guns.

Matt Damon bald and tatted in Elysium. (Photo courtesy Sony Pictures)

All things considered, Warner Bros.’ We’re the Millers had last weekend’s most impressive performance. The R-rated comedy starring Jennifer Aniston and Jason Sudeikis opened on the high end of expectations with a second place take of $26.42 million. That brings the five-day start for the modestly budgeted film to a very healthy $37.91 million. Given the daily holding pattern of We’re the Millers thus far, it should only be a short matter of time before the film moves ahead of Elysium in the daily rankings.

Disney’s Planes debuted in third with $22.23 million. The DisneyToon Studios produced computer animated spin-off to the Cars franchise opened on the lower end of expectations. While Planes didn’t deliver a Pixar-level debut, it wasn’t expected to do so, given its nature as a non-Pixar release with a much more modest price tag. Planes opened 66 percent below the $66.14 million debut of 2011’s Cars 2, but will have a strong chance of holding up better than Cars 2 did given the much smaller opening weekend rush out and the lack of any new computer animated films entering the marketplace until Sony’s Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 on Sept. 27.

Among this weekend’s four new wide releases, 21st Century Fox’s Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters was off to the weakest start with a fourth place take of $14.40 million. That brings the five-day total for the fantasy sequel to a soft $23.26 million. While Sea of Monsters had been widely expected to deliver the weekend’s smallest debut, the film nonetheless opened below expectations. Sea of Monsters opened 43 percent below the $40.57 million five-day take of 2010’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, which opened on a Friday. Like Planes, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters should hold up well going forward given the lack of new family options in the marketplace during the near future.

In their respective second weekends of release, Universal’s 2 Guns fell four spots and 58 percent to place in fifth with $11.25 million, while Sony’s The Smurfs 2 was down three places and 47 percent to land in sixth with $9.33 million. Four new wide releases entering the marketplace clearly took a toll on both films and on holdovers in general.