Sony scored a touchdown pass this Super Bowl weekend with ‘Dear John’ nabbing the top spot from ‘Avatar.’
Sony/Screen Gems scored a touchdown pass this Super Bowl weekend at the domestic B.O. as Nicholas Sparks’ lit adaptation “Dear John” opened to an estimated $32.4 million, tackling 20th Century Fox’s holdover phenom “Avatar,” which landed in the No. 2 spot with $23.6 million in its eighth frame.
The weekend’s other wide opener, Lionsgate’s John Travolta starrer “From Paris With Love,” saw a disappointing launch with $8.1 million at 2,722 playdates. Pic was expected to see a steep drop Sunday as its core male aud stayed home for the game.
Studios predicted a 50%-60% decline across the board between the Super Bowl and the storm dubbed Snowpocalypse on the East Coast.
Fox Searchlight’s “Crazy Heart” saw the biggest post-Oscar nominations boost, earning $3.6 million after jumping from 239 screens to 819 in its eighth frame for a cume of $11.2 million. Pic scored mentions for stars Jeff Bridges and Maggie Gyllenhaal, as well as for songsters T Bone Burnett and Ryan Bingham in the original song category.
Overseas, James Cameron’s “Avatar” stayed on top, slipping 20% for an estimated weekend gross of $76 million at 10,523 screens in 120 territories.
Femmes made up a whopping 84% of the aud for “Dear John,” directed by Lasse Hallstrom and produced and financed by Relativity Media. Aud for the pic starring Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried was 64% under 21. “Dear John” scored the frame’s top per-screen average with $10,913 at 2,969 locations, hitting notable highs on Friday and Saturday with $13.8 million and $12.4 million, respectively. Pic was expected to fall 50% on Sunday for an estimated $6.2 million.
Total should give the film just enough yardage to become the highest-grossing film ever opening over the pigskin frame. Previous record holder was Disney’s “Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour,” bowing to $31.1 million on Feb. 1, 2008.
Geoffrey Ammer, prexy of worldwide marketing for Relativity Media, said execs expected a drop from Friday to Saturday, “but to only drop 10% is attributed to the picture and its playability; there’s something in this movie for everybody.”
The most recent adaptations of Sparks’ novels, Warner Bros.’ “Nights in Rodanthe” (2008) and New Line’s “The Notebook” (2004), opened at $13.4 million and $13.5 million, respectively, less than “John’s” Friday take alone.
“John” also became Screen Gems’ highest opener, topping “The Exorcism of Emily Rose” with $30 million in 2005.
Blizzard conditions on the East Coast put a damper on Lionsgate’s “From Paris With Love,” with some 200 theaters failing to report grosses because of the storm.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to Hollywood.com. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. “Dear John,” $32.4 million.
2. “Avatar,” $23.6 million.
3. “From Paris With Love,” $8.1 million.
4. “Edge of Darkness,” $7 million.
5. “The Tooth Fairy,” $6.5 million.
6. “When in Rome,” $5.5 million.
7. “The Book of Eli,” $4.8 million.
8. “Crazy Heart,” $3.7 million.
9. “Legion,” $3.4 million.
10. “Sherlock Holmes,” $2.6 million.
[Credit: Variety / Hollywood.com]