Paramount’s Beowulf emerged victorious from the weekend’s box office brawl, raking in approximately $28 million to take the top spot from DreamWorks Animation’s Bee Movie. While there’s some debate as to whether or not the performance-capture movie can be considered animation, it’s important to note that the top two films in release in North America are completely digital creations. Bee Movie slips back to the No. 2 spot with an estimated $14.3 million and a three-week total of approximately $94 million.
Director Robert Zemeckis’ adaptation of the Anglo Saxon epic poem performed well for a CG film that operates outside of the family film arena. Though the more conventional Bee Movie opened bigger with $38 million in its first weekend, the PG-13 rated Beowulf may have paved the path for more adult themes to make their way into animation produced by major American studios. The pic is expected to do especially well in foreign markets where animation isn’t considered to be primarily for children. It has already made an estimated $17 million overseas, bringing its worldwide opening gross to around $45 million. If word-of-mouth is strong enough, the film should be able to turn a profit on its hefty $150 million investment before young males flock to stores to pick up the inevitable unrated version on DVD.
The expensive live-action crime drama American Gangster from Universal Pictures covered its $100 million budget over the weekend, bringing in another $13 million to raise its three-week domestic take to approximately $100.9 million. Warner Bros.’ holiday comedy Fred Claus drops a notch to No. 4 with an estimated $12 million, outperforming newcomer Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium. The vfx-heavy family flick from 20 century Fox debuted at No. 5 with around $10 million.
Both Beowulf and Bee Movie should benefit from the Thanksgiving holiday, as will Disney’s Enchanted. The well-reviewed mix of animation and live action opens on Wednesday, along with 20th Century Fox’s Hitman, an action-packed adaptation of the popular video game from Eidos.
