Despite stiff competition from four new films, Disney's animated little fowl held on to the top slot at the US box office this weekend, according to records by Box Office Mojo.
Chicken Little, which took the opening slot in its first week out last week was still number one this week by a commanding lead. With a second week box office tally of $32 million, the film took in almost as much as the four new openers combined. This puts the total box office for the movie at approximately $80.8 million, which will definitely buy some chicken feed for Disney's animation department.
The next three slots on the chart were all held by newcomers.
Sony's sci-fi/fantasy family film, Zathura: A Space Adventure, rocketed into second place with a weekend ticket tally of $14 million. Adapted from the Chris Van Allsburg children's novel of the same name, about two young brothers who are drawn into an intergalactic adventure when their house is magically hurtled through space by a board game, the Jon Favreau-directed film is part of a book trilogy that started with 1995's Jumanji.
The Jennifer Aniston/Clive Owen thriller Derailed debuted in the third slot. This is the first film released by brothers Bob and Harvey Weinstein since they left their original company, the Disney-owned Miramax, in a highly controversial move last year. The Weinstein Company-released film, with its story of an extramarital affair that leads to brutality and blackmail, had box office receipts of $12.8 million.
With a slightly smaller box office total, Get Rich or Die Tryin' pulled in $12.5 million, but did so by opening two days earlier, on Wednesday. Starring rapper Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, the film is loosely based on the artist's own life story of a drug dealer who trys to straighten out his life with music. The film's release has been marred by several controversies, including the placement of billboards near schools and a shooting in the lobby of a Pittsburgh theater showing the film on opening day.
Last week's other new film, Jarhead, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Jamie Foxx, stopped its slide at fifth place, with a box office of $12.3 million.
Anchoring the bottom slot on this week's chart is the final new release of the week, the umpteenth adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Though it was only playing in 215 theaters nationwide (compared with 3658 theaters for "Chicken Little"), the Keira Knightley film brought in $2.8 million in ticket sales.All totals are based upon actual Friday and Saturday ticketing, as well as an advanced estimate of Sunday's receipts. Here is this weekend's estimated box office champs:
1. Chicken Little, $32 million. (BellaOnline review)
2. Zathura: A Space Adventure, $14 million.
3. Derailed, $12.8 million.
4. Get Rich or Die Tryin', $12.5 million.
5. Jarhead, $12.3 million.
6. Saw II, $9.4 million.
7. The Legend of Zorro, $6.6 million.
8. Prime, $4 million.
9. Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story, $3.8 million.
10. Pride and Prejudice, $2.8 million.
