The Thanksgiving weekend may have been bad news for a lot of birds, but not the singing and dancing penguins in Warner Bros. animated feature Happy Feet. The CG family flick held onto the top spot at the North American Box office over the holiday period and even managed to cross the $100 million mark in its second week of release.
Over the five-day holiday period, Happy Feet took in an estimated $57.5 million, pulling well ahead of Sony’s James Bond pic, Casino Royale, after last weekend’s neck-and-neck race. Director George Miller’s arctic adventure also rolled out in select foreign markets, earning approximately 4.7 million in ticket sales abroad. Despite opening late in a year saturated with animated releases, the film has managed to achieve a level of success that has eluded many of the previous contenders, including Warner Bros.’ own The Ant Bully, which made only $54.6 million worldwide.
Out of the twelve CG features to get wide releases this year, Happy Feet is one of just four that have crossed the $100 million mark domestically. Disney/Pixar’s Cars made well over $200 million in North America and Fox Animation’s Ice Age: The Meltdown passed $195 million on home turf. Happy Feet may be on track to pass up DreamWorks Animation’s Over the Hedge, which finished its domestic theatrical run with just over $155 million.
Casino Royale held onto the No. 2 spot for a second week, earning an estimated $45 million over the five-day frame and driving its cumulative domestic take to around $94 million. The film has been an even bigger hit overseas, racking up more than $128 million in theaters abroad for a worldwide take of approximately $222 million.
Debuting at No. 3 was Buena Vista’s time-travel thriller D’j’ vu, which pulled in an estimated $29 million over the holiday period. Christmas comedy Deck The Halls from 20 Century Fox was No. 4 with around $16.8 million and Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan made an estimated $15.4 million to round out the top five and earn a spot it into the $100 million club.
The Fountain, director Darren Aronofsky’s visually arresting and poetic fable about man’s quest for immortality, debuted at No. 10. Featuring impressive visual effects work, the film opened in 1,472 theaters and made around $5.4 million for Warner Bros., barely edging out New Line’s rock & roll comedy Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny for a top-10 finish.
Also holding onto a top-10 spot is DreamWorks Animation’s and Aardman Animations’ Flushed Away, which gobbled up an estimated $7.6 million in Thanksgiving leftovers to come in at No. 8. during its fourth week of release.
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