I feel it takes a special movie to land itself in the top spot of the box office early on Monday mornings. When I wrote about the top four major releases last Friday I never expect The Lion King in 3D to do as well as it did. I figured it would be in the bottom of the bunch of movies and that Contagion would have again taken the top spot. But The Lion King is King!
Weekend of September 16th–18th, 2011
The Lion King reigns supreme.
Even after seventeen years from its original release The Lion King still has legs. I would have guess everyone would prefer to just stay home and pop the DVD (or Blu-ray) into the player and just watch. Then I thought to myself, I went to see Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi (when they were still calling those movies by those names) back in 1997 just to see them in the theater when they were re-released as special editions. So, if they sold me, then they can sell anyone!
Melissa said it best, it is that generation (like ours–that early 30’s–late 20’s) that have kids that grew up seeing The Lion King and want their kids to see it the same way. I just don’t think Peanut and the girls would sit still watching it in the theater. Especially in 3D.
On Saturday morning, The Hollywood Reporter had up that The Lion King was set to make between $22-25 million this weekend, it instead went on to make $29 million. Not bad for a movie that has not only made back its price tag in its first weekend out in 1994, but one that has been around and most people own in their own homes on one media platform or another.
Contagion got cured by a Lion but it out drove Drive and the Help.
Last week’s number 1 Contagion was just down 35% to number 2 with about $14.5 million. Drive rounded up third with $11 million while the summer sleeper hit The Help brought in an addition $6.4 million.
Straw Dogs and I Don’t Know How She Does It fair on the low end.
And the other two major releases of the weekend were Straw Dogs which came in right behind The Help with $5 million and the Sarah Jessica Parker comedy I Don’t Know How She Does It coming in at number 6 with the unfortunate tally of $4.5 million.
Apes still in Top Ten.
One of the summer’s highly acclaimed movies Rise of the Planet of the Apes still seems to have a power grip over the Top Ten, even this far into September as it accumed about $2.6 million this weekend at number 10 bringing its domestic gross to: $171.6 million. I think by next week it’ll be out of the top ten but still grossing something.