US Box Office Report: Batman Defeats Total Recall

WEEKEND OF 3rd – 5th AUGUST 2012
1. THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (Weekend: US$36m / US total: $354m)

2. TOTAL RECALL (Weekend: US$26m / US total: $26m)

3. DIARY OF A WIMPY KID: DOG DAYS (Weekend: US$14.7m / US total: $14.7m)

4. ICE AGE: CONTINENTAL DRIFT (Weekend: US$8.4m / US total: $131.8m)

5. THE WATCH (Weekend: US$6.4m / US total: $25.4m)

6. TED (Weekend: US$5.5m / US total: $203m)

7. STEP UP REVOLUTION (Weekend: US$5.3m / US total: $23.1m)

8. THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (Weekend: US$4.3m / US total: $250.6m)

9. BRAVE (Weekend: US$2.9m / US total: $223m)

10. MAGIC MIKE (Weekend: US$1.4m / US total: $110m)

“The Dark Knight Rises” is proving to slowly but surely have Summer legs, as it stayed on top of the US Box Office for a third weekend in a row, beating out two new movies. The Christopher Nolan film has now amassed $378m throughout the rest of the world, though specific figures have not been made available just yet. It was expected to be toppled, or at least closely contested by the remake of “Total Recall”. But that showdown never materialised, as Len Wiseman’s movie bombed upon release. At this point it’s safe (though sad) to say star Colin Farrell is certified Box Office poison, as yet another Summer release with him headlining has failed to do well. Negative reviews and word-of-mouth over the remake will all but ensure it sinks like a rock next week onwards. Expect this to hurt Farrell’s career significantly.

Debuting at No.3 is “Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Dog Days” which also failed to make an impression. This instalment’s $14m opening fell far short of its two predecessors, which each earned over $20m. Twentieth Century Fox is smarting over this dud, though the blow has been somewhat softened by their other family pic, “Ice Age: Continental Drift”. Dropping to the 4th spot, it may have also made less than previous outings, but is on track for Fox to profit quite handsomely. Another miserable flop is “The Watch”, which dropped 50% in sales to No.5 with a weak $25.4m total in its second weekend. That’s just half its reported $68m budget.

Mark Wahlberg comedy “Ted” on the other hand is still going strong at No.6, crossing the $200m mark in its sixth weekend. “Step Up Revolution” dropped 55% in its second weekend to land at 7th place. Sony’s “The Amazing Spider-Man” reboot hit No.8, with a global total of $678m after a month. Disney-Pixar’s “Brave” also continues to show decent if unspectacular legs in the 9th spot, with a $223m total in the US that outperforms “Wall-E” and “Ratatouille”. Finally, at No.10, Steven Soderbergh’s “Magic Mike” winds down a shockingly strong performance, having made $110m. A sequel is now being planned.