You knew Twilight was going to earn boatloads this weekend. But how did films not starring vampires do? Terrible. Below, your Top Five movies.
1. Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (weekend: $139.5 million)
Breaking Dawn couldn’t quite top the Twilight franchise’s previous biggest debut (New Moon opened to $142.8 million in 2009), but it did set the record for best-ever North American first weekend for a movie in which a vampire delivers a demon baby via C-section with his own teeth (discounting inflation). Eighty percent of Dawn‘s audience was female, which is less than we might have guessed.
2. Happy Feet Two (weekend: $22 million)
Despite a voice cast that includes Matt Damon and Brad Pitt, and a boost from 3D tickets, this dancing-penguins sequel (budget: $135 million) opened to half of what the 2006 original did — and next weekend, families will presumably opt for The Muppets. Happy Feet Three: probably not happening.
3. Immortals (weekend: $12.2 million; cumulative: $52.9)
Tarsem Singh’s $75 million-budgeted 300 copy is shaping up to be a modest disappointment, despite all the money the production saved on writers and shirts.
4. Jack and Jill (weekend: $12 million; cumulative: $41 million)
Adam Sandler’s Razzie-contending stinker is technically a letdown for Sony and Adam Sandler (whose movies usually do way better, no matter their Rotten Tomatoes scores), but we’re impressed it’s earned as much as it has. People spent $41 million on this thing? Really? Didn’t they see the trailer?
5. Puss in Boots (weekend: $10.7 million; cumulative: $122.3 million)
This Shrek spinoff just installed another swimming pool in Antonio Banderas’ backyard.