There were expectations that the box office was going to have a decent weekend, with "I Am Legend" starring Will Smith, and the family film Alvin and the Chipmunks poised to put up some decent numbers. I don't think anyone expected what happened though, as the two films far exceeded expectations.
With the poor release of The Golden Compass last weekend, a lot of people were wondering if this Holiday season was going to be all humbug for the film industry. That question has now been answered.
The top finisher this weekend, was I Am Legend, which brought in a hefty $76.5 million. The average per venue was a strong $21,224. Most people tracking the film believed it was going to open more in the $40-50 million range.
For Will Smith, some are already saying it's his appeal as an actor that is driving these numbers, and in a small part that's true. But more importantly, where Smith is strong is in his ability to identify great films to participate in. Not a lot of actors have that ability, as history proves with the up and down results of their films.
The numbers for I Am Legend were so strong that it's the strongest opening of any film for December in box office history, even beating out Lord of the Rings: Return of the King ($72.6 million) and The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe ($65.6 million). I do think it'll have a hard time continuing on though, as the content of the film will probably cause it to drop in a big way. But who knows, there's been such a pent up demand to watch a decent film, that people may cause it to have a stronger hold than I think.
While I Am Legend was a surprise in how strong it launched, I think Alvin and the Chipmunks' performance had to be a shock, as it brought in a huge $45 million, with an average of $12,950 per venue. It was largely expected to draw only about half that much, and finish at about $20-25 million.
The performance of Alvin is so strong that it landed it in the top ten film launches of December. What the industry and critics all continue to miss, is the strength and demand of the family market. The fact that it was pummeled by critics and critic wannabees, shows they still don't understand the family market at all.
Underperforming again is The Golden Compass, which finished third, but plunged to $9 million, making it a drop of 65 percent over its opening weekend. This is a good example of how not to make an alleged family film. It's not, that's why families and parents are punishing it for entering the demographic under the guise of being family-friendly.
For Enchanted, they dropped to $6 million to finish fourth, but when you take into account the competition from Alvin, it held fairly decent, dropping about 44 percent, but at the same time it could do well for the rest of the holiday season, especially immediately after Christmas. So far its earnings have reached $92.3 million domestically.
The top ten for the weekend:
| 1 | I Am Legend | $76,535,000 |
| 2 | Alvin and the Chipmunks | $45,000,000 |
| 3 | The Golden Compass | $9,025,000 |
| 4 | Enchanted | $6,004,000 |
| 5 | No Country for Old Men | $3,000,000 |
| 6 | The Perfect Holiday | $2,552,000 |
| 7 | Fred Claus | $2,305,000 |
| 8 | This Christmas | $2,300,000 |
| 9 | Atonement | $1,853,000 |
| 10 | August Rush | $1,785,000 |
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