Friday Report: 'Apes' Rise
On Friday, Rise of the Planet of the Apes handily won the box office battle, while The Change-Up attracted few bodies and The Smurfs extended its lead over Cowboys & Aliens. Rise of the Planet of the Apes climbed to the top with an estimated $19.75 million on close to 5,400 screens at 3,648 locations, which was superior to such recent comps as District 9 ($14.2 million) and Terminator Salvation($14.8 million). The franchise reboot's launch even grossed more than I, Robot's $18.1 million (though sold fewer tickets) and wasn't far off from X-Men: First Class's $21.4 million earlier this summer. However, it was beneathPlanet of the Apes (2001)'s $24.6 million ($34.7 million adjusted for ticket price inflation) from ten years ago, as it should be considering it didn't cover the franchise's most iconic territory. The trajectories of past similar movies suggest that Ride of the Planet of the Apes is headed for $52-57 million this weekend. It was a freaky Friday for The Change-Up, which opened in fourth with a relatively soft estimated $4.75 million on around 3,300 screens at 2,913 locations (suggesting around $13 million for the weekend). That was a far cry from the summer's other R-rated comedies, including evenFriends with Benefits. Despite the attempt at a raunchy twist on the body switch comedy, Change-Up also fell far short of the recent body-switch comedies 17 Again ($9.4 million), 13 Going on 30 ($7.4 million) and Freaky Fridayeven before adjusting for ticket-price inflation. Ranking second, The Smurfs dipped 55 percent from last Friday to an estimated $5.95 million, tracking similarly toG-Force. Cowboys & Aliens wrangled third place with an estimated $4.75 million (just a thousand more thanChange-Up), collapsing by 64 percent. The two movies' respective eight-day tallies were $61.2 million and $56.4 million. Captain American: The First Avenger's neck-and-neck battle with Thor continued. Captain gained ground on the weekdays, but Thor's mightier weekend numbers have kept it slightly ahead. Rounding out the Top Five,Captain was off 52 percent to an estimated $3.75 million for a $133.9 million sum in 15 days, compared to Thor's $134.3 million at the same point. Crazy, Stupid, Love. was right on Captain's heels with $3.73 million, dropping 43 percent for a $33.8 million total in eight days. Meanwhile, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 again hewed closely to the previous July Potters, slowing 48 percent to an estimated $3.4 million for a whopping $334 million tally in 22 days. Friday Estimates
Movie Distributor Genre Gross Change Thtrs. Per Thtr. Total Gross Days
1
(new)
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
20th Century Fox
Adventure
$19,750,000
3,648
$5,414
$19,750,000
1
2
(1)
The Smurfs
Sony Pictures
Adventure
$5,864,000
+43.28%
3,395
$1,727
$61,066,000
8
3
(2)
Cowboys and Aliens
Universal
Action
$4,695,000
+49.04%
3,754
$1,251
$56,315,000
8
4
(new)
The Change-Up
Universal
Comedy
$4,677,000
2,913
$1,606
$4,677,000
1
5
(3)
Captain America: The First Avenger
Paramount Pictures
Action
$3,743,000
+37.89%
3,620
$1,034
$133,925,000
15
6
(5)
Crazy, Stupid, Love
Warner Bros.
Comedy
$3,700,000
+53.43%
3,020
$1,225
$33,785,000
8
7
(4)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II
Warner Bros.
Adventure
$3,400,000
+30.00%
3,175
$1,071
$334,000,000
22
8
(6)
Friends with Benefits
Sony Pictures
Romantic Comedy
$1,450,000
+22.88%
2,398
$605
$45,290,000
15
9
(7)
Horrible Bosses
Warner Bros.
Comedy
$1,300,000
+37.92%
2,025
$642
$101,800,000
29
10
(8)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Paramount Pictures
Action
$913,000
+26.37%
1,854
$492
$342,071,000
38
