Friday Numbers (U4: 9.8M; RT: 6.2M; EL&IC: 3.2M; Haywire: 3M; Contraband:- 3.7M)

[CJohn]

http://www.deadline....ely-loud-solid/

FRIDAY PM, 2ND UPDATE: It’s another good start for 2012 domestic box office complete with surprises. The weekend overall looks like $125M, up as much as +30% from last year. No. 1 is Sony Pictures/Screen Gems’ fourquel Underworld Awakening playing better than its previous installment, which is rare for franchises domestically. The Kate Beckinsale horror actioner garnered an ‘A-’ CinemaScore from audiences and will win the weekend easily. “Right where we wanted to be and in this crowded market pretty great,” a Sony exec emails me. Hollywood studios were stunned by how well the No. 2 film, George Lucas banner film Red Tails, did in matinees today. Until they discovered that the Lucasfilm/Twentieth Century Fox movie’s marketing inside the African-American community resulted in busloads of schoolkids and midday filmgoers for the Tuskegee airmen’s story. Right now the pic appears very frontloaded but could keep surprising by flying towards $20M because of its ‘A’ CinemaScore from audiences.

Bad weather in the Midwest means all the holdovers take a big hit that might get better as it moves west. No. 3 is Universal’s R-rated thriller Contraband, the Martin Luther King weekend’s big winner which drops -57% today and an even milder -50% for the weekend. No. 4 is Warner Bros’ Oscar-buzzed 9-11 emotionfest Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close which expands in its 5th weekend into 2,630 theaters today. Its ‘A-’ CinemaScore from audiences will aid its good word-of-mouth. No. 5 is Relativity’s R-rated Haywire actioner which I felt was marketed very poorly. But it’s shocking to see a Steven Soderbergh-directed film receive a rare ‘D+” CinemaScore from audiences. Despite expanding to 662 runs is the Golden Globes winner and Academy Awards frontrunner The Artist with a quiet $750K for maybe a $2.7M weekend and $12.4M cume.

Here are the Top 10 estimated grosses with analysis coming:

1. Underworld Awakening (Sony Pictures) NEW [3,078 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $9.8M, Estimated Weekend $23.4M

2. Red Tails (LucasFilm/Fox) NEW [2,512 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $6.2M, Estimated Weekend $17M

3. Contraband (Universal) Week 2 [2,870 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $3.7M, Estimated Weekend $12.5M, Estimated Cume $46.2M

4. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (Warner Bros) Week 5 [2,630 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $3.2M, Estimated Weekend $9.5M, Estimated Cume $10M

5. Haywire (Relativity) NEW [2,439 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $3M, Estimated Weekend $8.6M

6. Beauty And The Beast 3D (Disney) Week 2 [2,625 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $2.1M (-61%), Estimated Weekend $8.5M, Estimated Cume $33.2M

7. Joyful Noise (Warner Bros) Week 2 [2,735 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $1.7M (-49%), Estimated Weekend $6M, Estimated Cume $21.8M

8. Mission: Impossible 4 (Paramount) Week 6 [2,519 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $1.6M, Estimated Weekend $5.5M, Estimated Cume $197.3M

9. Sherlock Holmes 2 (Warner Bros) Week 6 [2,485 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $1.2M, Estimated Weekend $4M, Estimated Cume $177.8M

10. The Iron Lady (The Weinstein Co) Week 4 [1,076 Theaters]

Estimated Friday $1M, Estimated Weekend $3.4M, Estimated Cume $12.4M

Edited January 22, 2012 by CJohn

[The Dark Alfred]

Good for U4, 50m and U5 secured.

[Mojoguy]

Good for Red Tails!

[fishstick]

Good to see that inflation and IMAX can`t make UW open bigger. It always makes 1/2 of its entire run in OW.

[DAR]

It's early of course but seems like another good weekend.

[rockNrollaDIM]

Really solid for UW4!Haywire estimate is just around where I expected it.

[fishstick]

Really solid for UW4!

Because it doesn`t drop. It doesn`t expend the fanbase either. I really don`t get the cheering. if the movie looked any good, fine, but it looks like POS. At least 3 other screened for critics. This didn`t dare. Edited January 21, 2012 by fishnets

[TLK]

Good numbers for all of the movies. Wasn't Haywire supposed to do around 6 million OW? If so 8-10 million is a good number in context but it is very, very early and numbers will change.

[Mojoguy]

At least 3 other screened for critics. This didn`t dare.

None of the Underworld movies have gotten good reviews at Rottontomatoes though. Critics will always hate the movies. As long as people keep watching them, it won't matter.

[fishstick]

Oh, wait, UW is also in 3D? And still can`t build bigger numbers? if it was Potter, twilight, TF,etc, that fact would have been pointed 20 times by now.

[Mojoguy]

Oh, wait, UW is also in 3D? And still can`t build bigger numbers? if it was Potter, twilight, TF,etc, that fact would have been pointed 20 times by now.

I think 3D hurts more than helps movies these days. Those numbers are good considering that the last Underworld movie with Kate was 6 years ago.

[fishstick]

UW4 is also 83 minutes long. So fast turnover. Tells you everything about the quality.Saw got its teeth broken by PA so UW will run into its own PA eventually.

[kayumanggi]

Again, awesome for 2012!

[iceroll]

Pretty disappointing for Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

[Fanboy]

2012 is off to a very solid start.

[fishstick]

Terrible year for Tom Hanks (since EL&IC really opened in 2011). Not to mention he was paied with former boxoffice queen and current one. And both movies tanked. He`ll have to do another shitty Dan Brown movie.

[DerekVl]

Word of mouth on Red tails seems incredibly high, I would actually expect it do be higher than it itNikki's numbers don't seem on either, The weekend totals for Red Tails don't seem on

[Mojoguy]

What's the CinemaScore for Red Tails right now?

[Ezen Baklattan]

I don't think that Cinemascores for openers will be known til tommorow. I'd imagine that it's pretty solid, though.

[Hiccup]

Actually this weekends numbers are good but expected.