X-Men Stands Tall At Box Office

The latest superhero comic book adaptation from 20th Century Fox pulled in big numbers over the weekend, setting a new Memorial Day record. X-Men: The Last Stand earned more than $120 million, according to estimates, solidly trouncing Sony’s The Da Vinci Code to take the top spot. Meanwhile, DreamWorks Animation’s Over the Hedge managed to hold onto most of its audience share in week two, finishing the four-day period in third place with an estimated $35.3 million.

Featuring visual effects work by MPC, Soho VFX, Weta Digital, Cinesite, Framestore CFC, Rhythm & Hues and Kleiser-Walczak, X-Men: The Last Stand kicked off the summer movie season with the kind of bang studios have been chasing with big event films like Poseidon and Mission: Impossible III, both of which performed below expectations. Even the highly hyped Da Vinci Code, which has raked in more than $145 million in just two weeks, hasn’t deciphered the secret to box office success quite like the Marvel superhero franchise has.

The first X-Men movie opened to just over $54 million in July of 2000 and eventurally earned nearly $300 million around the world. X2: X-Men United followed in early May of 2003 with an opening weekend take of $85.5 million on its way to $407.5 million worldwide. Though not the best reviewed, Last Stand may be the most profitable of the series, having smashed the Memorial Day weekend record of $90.2 million set by The Lost World: Jurassic Park in 1997.

As predicted, business for The Da Vinci Code trailed off nearly 50% in week two, while Over the Hedge saw only an 8% decline. The CG critter pic has plundered an estimated $84 million since opening last week, and should be around a good chunk of the summer. However, stiff competition will arrive in two weeks when Disney/Pixar’s Cars races out of the gate. The latest directorial effort from John Lasseter (Toy Story, Toy Story 2, A Bug’s Life), the talking car movie has been garnering rave reviews and should prove to be another blockockbuster hit for the Mouse House and its prized toon shop.