Weekend Estimates: Pixar Tops Pitt on Monster Weekend
June 23, 2013
Pixar will record its 14th consecutive number one opening this weekend, according to studio estimates released on Sunday morning. Monsters University is set to posted about $82 million, according to Disney, which places it comfortably ahead of zombie actioner World War Z on $66 million. That start is a big relief for Paramount, which spent $190 million on the film and could have lost a lot of money if it failed. It will still need good legs and lots of overseas income to record a profit.
Man of Steel, meanwhile, lands in third place with a health $41.2 million. That's down 65% from last weekend, which suggests we won't see many more milestones for the film beyond the $200 million it passed this weekend. In a sign of how strong box office is this weekend, Man of Steel is the third-highest-grossing film to finish in third place over a weekend after Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel's opening behind Avatar and Sherlock Holmes on Christmas Weekend 2009, and Madagascar's Memorial Day debut behind Star Wars Ep. III: Revenge of the Sith and The Longest Yard in 2005.
Just outside the top 10 this weekend, The Bling Ring will post a respectable $2 million from 650 theaters. Much Ado About Nothing also expanded this weekend and will post about $760,000 from 206 theaters. Both films are average around $3,700 per theater, which suggests their opportunities for further expansion will be relatively limited.
In limited release, Unfinished Song has the best theater average among films reporting so far with a projected $27,692 in two venues. Twenty Feet From Stardom continues to do well with $64,682 from six theaters.
Bruce Nash bruce.nash@the-numbers.com
Filed under: Weekend Estimates, Monsters University, World War Z, Much Ado About Nothing, Unfinished Song, 20 Feet From Stardom, The Bling Ring