The Hollywood Blacklist: Narnia Dominates with $67.1 Million

The Hollywood Blacklist

An unapologetic Wisconsin Republican taking the left-wing Hollywood radical elitists to task and fighting spiritedly against their self-aggrandizing agenda of political correctness and liberal methodology which only serves to demonizing the United States military in their efforts to bring victory to the war against terrorism. Only the operator of this weblog can directly post here, but comments are always welcome. You can e-mail the owner of this site at joseph.kastner@marquette.edu.

Sunday, December 11, 2005

Narnia Dominates with $67.1 Million

Source: Comingsoon.net

Walt Disney Pictures' The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe exceeded expectations, opening to an impressive $67.1 million. Director Andrew Adamson's adaptation of the C.S. Lewis novel marks the second-biggest opening ever for a film in December, surpassing The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers ($62 million) and trailing only The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King ($72.6 million). It is also the 23rd best opening of all-time domestically and the third biggest debut of 2005 so far. The fantasy-adventure, budgeted at about $180 million, opened in 3,616 theaters and averaged $18,546 per location.

Warner Bros. Pictures expanded Stephen Gaghan's Syriana into 1,723 theaters which allowed the film to climb to the second spot with $12 million. Made for $50 million, the political thriller, starring George Clooney, Matt Damon and Jeffrey Wright, has earned $13.5 million in three weeks.

WB's Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire dropped 48.1% in ticket sales its fourth weekend but still managed to add $10.3 million for a grand total of $244.1 million. The $150 million fourth installment in the franchise now stands at 37th on the all-time domestic blockbuster list and 29th on the worldwide list with $576.9 million, just behind War of the Worlds ($588.9 million).

Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line, from 20th Century Fox, collected a healthy $5.8 million in its fourth weekend, a dip of just 39.7%. James Mangold's $28 million-budgeted drama, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon, has made $77 million. Likewise, Paramount's Yours, Mine and Ours dropped just 37.6% in its third weekend with $5.2 million for a total of $40.9 million. Directed by Raja Gosnell, the comedy was produced for $45 million.

Paramount's Aeon Flux, however, took a hefty 63.5% drop its second weekend with $4.6 million, good for sixth place. Starring Charlize Theron, the $62 million big screen adaptation stands at $20.3 million.

Also notable is Warner Bros.' The Polar Express: An IMAX 3D Experience which entered the top 12 with $946,000 from just 66 IMAX theaters, an average of $14,333.

In limited release, Sony's Memoirs of a Geisha earned $647,000 from eight theaters for an average of $84,250 per site. Rob Marshall directed the $85 million drama, starring Zhang Ziyi, Ken Watanabe and Michelle Yeoh. Even more impressive was Ang Lee's Brokeback Mountain, with Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal, which garnered $545,000 from just five theaters, an average of $109,000. That marks the 9th highest per theater average ever for a film. Also, The Weinstein Co.'s Mrs. Henderson Presents, starring Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins, earned $58,200 from six theaters.