The number one and two movies from last week’s box office switched places as Safe House took the prize over the President’s Day holiday weekend. Last week’s top film, The Vow, came in second with $23.6 million while the Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds thriller barely took first with $24 million.
Nicolas Cage’s return to his dark superhero franchise won the week in terms of new films at the Cineplex. Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance came in third with $22 million, giving it the edge over new films This Means War and The Secret World of Arrietty.
Neither of those two new films earned the fourth spot, as the family adventure film Journey 2: The Mysterious Island earned another $20.1 million in its second week of release.
This Means War, starring Chris Pine, Tom Hardy, Reese Witherspoon and Chelsea Handler, debuted to $17.6 million. The Phantom Menace's return to screens in 3D nabbed sixth place, adding another $7.9 million to its haul. The number one film from two weeks ago, the found-footage, superhero origins story Chronicle took seventh with $7.5 million.
Disney’s The Secret World of Arrietty, the third new film on screens this weekend, had to settle for ninth place with its $6.4 million debut.
Box office top 10:
1. Safe House, $24 million
2. The Vow, $23.6 million
3. Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, $22 million
4. Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, $20.1 million
5. This Means War, $17.6 million
6. Star Wars: Episode One: The Phantom Menace in 3-D, $7.9 million
7. Chronicle, $7.5 million
8. The Woman in Black, $6.6 million
9. The Secret World of Arrietty, $6.4 million
10. The Grey, $3 million