The long Thanksgiving weekend was good to Disney’s partially animated romantic comedy Enchanted, which conjured up an estimated $50 million domestically over the five-day period and easily took the top spot at the North American box office. Meanwhile, Paramount’s Beowulf also benefited from the holiday boost, slipping just 15% in its second weekend with around $23.3 million and two-week gross of $56 million. The performance-capture fantasy pic placed third behind Sony’s family drama This Christmas, which earned an estimated $27 million despite opening in fewer theaters than most of its competitors.
Based on the popular video game, 20th Century Fox’s Hitman performed stronger than expected, debuting at No. 4 with approximately $21 million and solidly beating fellow newcomers August Rush and The Mist. Released by Warner Bros., August Rush found moviegoers in no rush to attend as ticket sales amounted to just $13 million since Wednesday. The inspirational tear jerker opened at No. 7, just barely ahead of MGM’s and The Weinstein Co.’s adaptation of the Stephen King novella The Mist. Perhaps plagued with bad release timing, the vfx-laden creature feature debuted in eighth place with an estimated $13 million despite mostly positive reviews.
Thanksgiving leftovers Bee Movie and Fred Claus fared better. DreamWorks Animation’s CG comedy about bees rounded out the top five with nearly $16 million, bringing its four-week cume to approximately $112 million. Warner Bros.’ Holiday comedy Fred Claus was close behind with around $15 million for its third weekend.
Beowulf is still the top draw overseas. Robert Zemeckis’ grand experiment in adult animation for the masses earned $26 million in 43 markets during its second weekend to cross the $100 million mark worldwide. To date, the movie has earned more than $48 million in foreign receipts and is expected to perform strongly for the next few weeks.
