The Hunger Games has done it, scored the third highest opening weekend in box office history. The Jennifer Lawrence-starring film earned $155 million in its first few days of release. It may be in third place all-time with its opening, but it can claim one box office record: It is the highest grossing opening weekend of all time for a film that was not a sequel!
Hunger Games fans came out in force to check out the solidly reviewed film and put it behind only Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 ($169.2 million) and The Dark Knight ($158.4 million) on the all-time opening weekend box office list.
To say Lionsgate is thrilled is an understatement. "When we went to bed Saturday night, we thought it would be $135 to $140 million, just because the numbers usually drop by 45 to 55-percent later in the weekend," said David Spitz, executive vice president of distribution at Lionsgate. "But, the numbers kept holding! For us, it’s a game-changer."
The rest of the top 10 was far off the leader -- with last week’s box office champ 21 Jump Street scoring second. That film made $23.1 million and was followed by The Lorax in third with $13.1 million, bringing its total revenue to an impressive $177.3 million.
Movie Fanatic called it when we wrote on Friday that The Hunger Games would surpass all the Twilight films with its far broader appeal. But even we were surprised by the $155 million haul. Next week sees Mirror Mirror, Goon and Wrath of the Titans arriving on screens. Will they even make a dent in the machine that is THG?
Box office top 10:
1. The Hunger Games, $155 million
2. 21 Jump Street, $21.3 million
3. Dr. Seuss' the Lorax, $13.1 million
4. John Carter, $5 million
5. Act of Valor, $2.1 million
6. Project X, $2 million
7. A Thousand Words, $1.9 million
8. October Baby, $1.7 million
9. Safe House, $1.39 million
10. Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, $1.37 million