Lego Movie Buries 3 Days to a Kill, Pompeii
The Lego Movie remained in first place last weekend (Feb. 21-23) with $31.31 million. Warner Brothers Studios’ 3D computer animated blockbuster has led the weekend box office with ease for three consecutive weeks. The Lego Movie was down 37 percent from the previous weekend, which represented a very solid hold given that last weekend’s three-day frame was significantly inflated in general by Valentine’s Day falling on a Friday. The film has grossed an impressive $183.02 million in 17 days.
In a slight surprise, Relativity Media’s 3 Days to Kill placed second with $12.24 million. The modestly budgeted action thriller starring Kevin Costner debuted on the high end of pre-release expectations. However, with poor reviews and upcoming competition from Non-Stop, Son of God and 300: Rise of an Empire, it is unlikely that 3 Days to Kill will hold up.
While it wasn’t that far behind in grosses, Sony/TriStar’s Pompeii was the far more disappointing of the two wide releases this weekend with a third place start of $10.34 million. The pricey 3D disaster film debuted on the low end of already modest expectations, which had tended to be slightly higher than those for 3 Days to Kill. Pompeii performed very poorly with its price tag in mind, though it should be noted that Sony didn’t produce the film or handle its advertising, which was done by FilmDistrict. As was the case with 3 Days to Kill, Pompeii also received poor critical reviews, so the film is unlikely to hold up well going forward either.
In addition to third place, Sony also claimed spots four through six last weekend. RoboCop placed in fourth with $9.81 million. The pricey sci-fi action remake was down 55 percent from the previous weekend’s three-day frame, which represented an especially underwhelming hold given that RoboCop received a smaller Valentine’s Day boost than most other wide releases last weekend. RoboCop continues to perform a bit softer than expected with a 12-day take of $44.01 million.
Sony’s The Monuments Men rounded out the weekend’s top five with $7.91 million. The George Clooney directed World War II film was down 49 percent from the previous weekend’s three-day frame. The Monuments Men surpassed the $50 million mark over the weekend and has now grossed $57.86 million through 17 days of release, as the film continues to perform on the high end of expectations.
Sony’s About Last Night landed in sixth place with $7.53 million. The romantic comedy remake featuring Kevin Hart was down a very sharp 71 percent from its opening three-day start. Given last weekend’s decline, Valentine’s Day was clearly a major driving force in last weekend’s strong performance. Despite the sharp decline last weekend, the low-budget film is still having a solid overall run this far with a 10-day start of $38.28 million.
In other box office news, Lionsgate’s The Hunger Games: Catching Fire has now moved into 10th place on the all-time unadjusted domestic box office chart. After grossing $319,126 last weekend,Catching Fire has grossed a massive $423.63 million to date. That places the film just ahead of the $423.32 million final domestic gross of 2006’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.
This Week | Last Week | Movie | Weekend Gross | Cumulative Gross | Weeks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | The Lego Movie | $31.31M | $183.02M | 3 |
2 | N/A | 3 Days to a Kill | $12.24M | $12.24M | 1 |
3 | N/A | Pompeii | $10.34M | $10.34M | 1 |
4 | 3 | Robocop | $9.81M | $44.01M | 2 |
5 | 4 | The Monuments Men | $7.91M | $57.86M | 3 |
6 | 2 | About Last Night | $7.53M | $38.28M | 1 |
7 | 6 | Ride Along | $4.62M | $123.13M | 6 |
8 | 7 | Frozen | $4.40M | $384.11M | 14 |
9 | 5 | Endless Love | $3.97M | $19.81M | 2 |
10 | 8 | Winter’s Tale | $2.17M | $11.27M | 2 |
Editor-in-Chief Mark Heckathorn is a journalist, movie buff and foodie. He oversees DC on Heels editorial operations as well as strategic planning and staff development. Reach him with story ideas or suggestions at dcoheditor (at) gmail (dot) com.