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CHRONICLE Edges Past Black
Fox's super power tale has $1 mil lead over Woman in Black. By
Jarrod Sarafin
February 05, 2012
Daniel Radcliffe's The Woman in Black falls $1 million short of Chronicle in debut
© CBS/Bob Trate
On a weekend where the central focus across the nation all but screams “Super,” it seems almost fitting that the film in the top spot is all about superpowers. And with a big game that comes down to the last moments of play, it also seems fitting that the box office race is still too close to call going into Monday. That’s the case here with 20th Century Fox still getting a nod for the estimated victory of Chronicle, the Joshua Trank-directed production which finished with only a $1 million lead over Daniel Radcliffe’s horror tale The Woman in Black.
It’s already a successful release for Fox, helmer Josh Trank and screenwriter Max Landis, with Chronicle taking in $22.0 million in estimated receipts over its first three days of release. The studio nearly collided with their $12 million budget after its first day alone, setting it up to be a very profitable venture by the end of February. With a cast and a promotional campaign geared around the teenager persuasion, the opening weekend score is thanks to that demographic. Over 61 percent of the ticket buyers for the film came in under the age of 25. The release also grabbed another $12.8 million from its first foreign territories this weekend, increasing Fox’s global score to $34.8 million after their first weekend.
"This is a fantastic result for a movie that was designed by and made for that younger demographic that has been largely missing from theaters," Fox executive vice president of distribution Chris Aronsonsaid.
Landing right behind the superpower tale is CBS Films’ horror tale, The Woman in Black. You can bet CBS is going to be watching the actual stats from Monday for Daniel Radcliffe’s first post-Harry Potter vehicle because the film’s estimates come in at $21.0 million, just $1 mil shy of the top dog. Much like Chronicle, the horror release also scored big off the younger moviegoers this weekend with 57 percent being under the age of 25. It’s also shaping up to be very profitable for the distributor as they only shelled out $3 million to acquire the film by Hammer Film Productions.
Both films outperformed expectations this weekend, sending box office revenues up 35 percent over last year’s performance. With that in mind, CBS executive Steven Friedlander was pleased with the results.
"You've got one of the biggest and hardest-working actors in a well-made, scary movie, with an innovative marketing campaign," said CBS Films’ Steven Friedlander.
Following in the 3rd place spot is last weekend’s champion, The Grey. The Open Road Films release dropped 51 percent over its sophomore frame by eating up another $9.5 million in ticket sales over the weekend. The latest numbers has increased their domestic cume to $34.7 million after 10 days of release, a very respectable score given the $25 million price tag.
The last remaining new wide release for this race was Universal Pictures’ marine drama Big Miracle and they found the 4th place spot in their opening frame. The John Krasinski-Drew Barrymore effort pulled in an estimated $8.5 million on 2,129 venues across the country, averaging $3,992 per showing. The budget is reportedly set at around $40 million.
And taking down the 5th place position is Sony Screen Gems’ Underworld Awakening. The fourth installment in their popular franchise pushed past the $50 million range in domestic sales this weekend by shooting up another $5.6 million this weekend. With the release’s third frame now in the bag, the genre distributor has a tally of $54.3 million. If you want to include the $53.9 million the Kate Beckinsale-led action tale has grabbed from foreign markets, Screen Gems has a global sum of $108.2 million. The studio shelled out $70 million on its budget.
Overall, with the top 2 films outperforming expectations this weekend, the box office found itself up 35 percent over last year’s performance.
| Rank | Movie | Weekend | Theaters | Average | Total | Budget |
| 1 | Chronicle | $22.0 mil | 2,907 | $7,568 | $22.0 mil | $12 |
| 2 | The Woman in Black | $21.0 mil | 2,855 | $7,356 | $21.0 mil | $3 |
| 3 | The Grey | $9.5 mil | 3,208 | $2,961 | $34.7 mil | $25 |
| 4 | Big Miracle | $8.5 mil | 2,129 | $3,992 | $8.5 mil | $40 |
| 5 | Underworld Awakening | $5.6 mil | 2,636 | $2,124 | $54.3 mil | $70 |
| 6 | One For the Money | $5.2 mil | 2,737 | $1,918 | $19.6 mil | $40 |
| 7 | Red Tails | $5.0 mil | 2,347 | $2,130 | $41.3 mil | $58 |
| 8 | The Descendants | $4.6 mil | 2,038 | $2,257 | $65.5 mil | ---- |
| 9 | Man on a Ledge | $4.5 mil | 2,998 | $1,501 | $14.7 mil | $42 |
| 10 | Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close | $3.9 mil | 2,505 | $1,567 | $26.7 mil | ---- |
Friday, February 10, 2012 Releases:
Wide
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (3,400+)
Safe House (3,000+)
The Vow (2,800+)
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace 3D (2,600+)
Limited
Chico & Rita
Death of the Virgin
In Darkness
Kung Fu Joe
The Turin Horse
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Good for you Chronicle. It looked like an intriguing movie.
Now on to more inmportant matters.... Anyone recognize who the aliens were in The Avengers trailer? You get a very quick glimps of them jumping of a bridge or of some sort. I tried frame by frame but it distorted the picture a bit.
I also think I like Edward Nortons Hulk better then than this one.