The five-day New Year’s weekend was good to Disney’s National Treasure: Book of Secrets and 20th Century Fox’s Alvin and the Chipmunks. The Nicolas Cage adventure sequel held onto the top spot with an estimated $55 million, bringing its two-week gross to around $144 million. Meanwhile, Chipmunks performed surprisingly well with approximately $44.2 million for the weekend and $154 million since opening on Dec. 14. Featuring CG character animation by Rhythm & Hues, the live-action adaptation of the classic cartoon holds strong at No. 2.
The vfx-laden Will Smith sci-fi/action vehicle I Am Legend continues to rake in the dough, pulling in an estimated $38 million over the holiday period and raising its three-week take to a whopping $205 million. The Warner Bros. pic currently occupies the No. 3 slot, just ahead of Universal’s Charlie Wilson’s War, which managed a respectable $20.5 million in its second weekend. Fox SearchLight’s critically acclaimed relationship comedy Juno debuted in wider release, climbing the chart to round out the top 5 with around $15.7 million.
New releases that didn’t make quite as big a splash include the effects-driven sci-fi/horror sequel Alien Vs. Predator, which debuted on Christmas Day and has grossed about $30 million dollars. Another unlikely Christmastime release, Tim Burton’s bloody musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, only made approximately $11.7 million for DreamWorks and Paramount in its second week.
The much-talked-about animated French feature Persepolis opened in just seven theaters in the U.S. on the 25th and has since grossed $218,000. The autobiographical film from Marjane Satrapi and co-director Vincent Paronnaud may roll out in a few more venues before making its way to home video just in time to take advantage of some awards-season publicity. It’s France’s official Oscar entry and may also be nominated for Best Animated Feature.
