‘Rise of the Guardians’ Now Outgrossing ‘Penguins of Madagascar’
This weekend DreamWorks Animation’s “Penguins of Madagascar” hit an ignominious milestone.
Box Office Report
‘Penguins’ Weak in U.S., Animated Films Big in France, U.K. and Spain
The DreamWorks brand continues its free-fall in the United States: “Penguins of Madagascar” opened below all expectations in the U.S.
‘Big Hero 6’ Drops to 2nd in U.S., ‘Penguins’ Opens 2nd in China
In its sophomore frame, “Big Hero 6” surrendered its position atop the American box office to “Dumb and Dumber To.”
‘Big Hero 6’ Top U.S. Box Office with $56.2M Launch
Disney’s “Big Hero 6,” directed by Don Hall and Chris Williams, topped the United States box office with a first weekend gross of $56.2 million.
‘Book of Life’ Earns $10 Mil in U.S., ‘Big Hero 6’ Almost $5 Mil in Russia
“The Book of Life” scored $10 million in its second weekend, which was good for 5th place at the U.S. box office, while “Big Hero 6” opened strong in Russia.
‘Book of Life’ Launches with $17 Million
This weekend the $50 million-budgeted Fox/Reel FX film “The Book of Life,” opened in the United States with an estimated $17 million.
‘Boxtrolls’ Opens with $17.3 Million; Laika’s Best-Ever U.S. Opening
Laika’s third feature film, “The Boxtrolls,” distributed by Focus Features, opened in third place in the United States with an estimated $17.3 million.
‘Boxtrolls’ Opens at #1 in the UK and #2 in Mexico
While there are currently no wholly animated films in the top ten of the U.S. box office, Laika’s “The Boxtrolls” began its foreign rollout in eight territories last weekend.
‘How to Train Your Dragon 2’ Overtakes ‘Rio 2’ As Top-Grossing Animated Film of 2014
“How to Train Your Dragon” has surpassed “Rio 2” as the top-grossing animated feature of 2014 to date.
‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Open In 1st; Sequel Announced
Paramount’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” opened with an estimated $65 million in the United States.
‘Planes: Fire & Rescue’ Opens With $18 Million, But The Real Money Is Elsewhere
Like its predecessor, “Planes: Fire & Rescue” opened in third place at the U.S. box office. The new film, however, grossed only $18 million, or 19% less than the opening of the first “Planes.”
‘How to Train Your Dragon 2’ Earns $25 Million in Second Weekend
In its second weekend, “How to Train your Dragon 2” eased 49% to an estimated $25.3 million. The drop was significantly greater than the 34% second-weekend decline of the original film in the series. Combined with the lower-than-expected opening weekend, the sequel is now all but guaranteed to finish below the original film’s $217.6 million domestic gross.
‘How to Train Your Dragon 2’ Launches with $50 Million
DreamWorks Animation’s “How to Train Your Dragon 2” opened in second place this weekend with an estimated $50 million. The film trailed the $60 million debut of another sequel, the R-rated “22 Jump Street,” directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who also directed “The LEGO Movie,” which opened to $69 million earlier this year.
‘Maleficent’ A Hit, Seth MacFarlane Western Flops
Last weekend at the U.S. box office, two films with strong animation ties opened in very different fashions. Disney’s “Maleficent,” a dark fantasy reimagining of the 1959 animated feature from the perspective of the villain, launched with $69.4 million.
Japanese People Can’t Let Go of ‘Frozen’
Every time you want to stop writing about “Frozen,” it breaks another record. This weekend, the Disney smash hit remained in first place at the Japanese box office for an incomprehensible eleventh weekend in a row.
‘Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return’ Has Record-Breaking Bad Debut
If you didn’t hear about last weekend’s opening of “Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return,” don’t worry because no one else in America did either. Opening in 2,575 theaters, the film eked out $3.7 million, which is the worst opening ever for an animated feature in saturated release (over 2,500 theaters). The previous animation record holder in this dubious category was the 2011 Weinstein Company release “Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil,” which grossed $4.1M from 2,505 theaters.
Blue Sky’s ‘Rio 2’ Opens In Second Place in the U.S.
Blue Sky’s “Rio 2” failed to unseat “Captain America 2” at the box office last weekend and settled for a second-place opening of $39.3 million.
‘Frozen’ Just Became The Highest-Grossing Animated Film Ever
This weekend, Disney’s “Frozen” became the highest grossing animated film of all time. Its $1.072 billion worldwide gross has surpassed the $1.063 billion of “Toy Story 3,” which was the previous record-holder for biggest animated feature.
‘Muppets’ Stumble in the US, ‘Rio 2’ Is #1 in Russia
No new animated movies debuted in the United States this weekend, although Disney’s family-oriented “Muppets Most Wanted” opened. The film opened in second place with a disappointing $16.5 million (estimated), far below the $29.2M opening of the franchise reboot “The Muppets” in 2011. That earlier film plummeted at the box office, too, after its opening, suggesting that the Muppets franchise isn’t as relevant to kids today as it was with earlier generations.
‘Mr. Peabody & Sherman’ Top Dog at Box Office
The DreamWorks feature “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” moved from second to first place in its sophomore weekend with a modest gross of $21.2 million (estimated)
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