(Source: www.boxofficemojo.com)
Last weekend was a mediocre box office at best. This boded ill for those movies making their debut but favoured flicks that have been around for a while.
One such film getting the benefit is Disney's Meet the Robinsons. After 5 weeks in theatres, it's still hanging in the Top 10, sitting at #7. The Mouse House's latest attempt at non-Pixar CGI animation pulled $4.8 million last weekend, mediocre numbers for a Disney animated film but decent compared to what else is out there.
It's obvious that Disney has pretty much given up on this flick ever hitting blockbuster status, and its chances of making $100 million are getting doubtful. Right now, Disney's #1 focus is making sure everyone knows about the next flick from Pixar, a little something called Ratatouille. That's coming out on June 29th.
As far as other animated movies go, last weekend was pretty dismal. Most of them have been around for a while, so they've pretty much tapped their initial audience and failed to find new ones. However, most flicks benefited from being made on the cheap, which set the bar for profitability much lower than most movies out right now. The last one is a veteran of 2006, making its last bid for blockbuster status.
Warner Bros./Imagi's TMNT slid to #22 on the chart, making a mere $492,467 in its 6th week. Its $53 million gross has to be disappointing to the film's producers, since it was a chance to bring the 1980's toy phenomenon back for a new generation. Unfortunately, those numbers ensure that TMNT is now the lowest-grossing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie ever released in theatres.
Right now the only thing saving Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters at the box office is the fact that it was made for $750,000. Between the wretched reviews and the lack of interest from the major chains, this flick only made $265,716, making $5,265,735 in its 3 weeks in theatres. Just to give you a little perspective, that's slightly more than current #5 placeholder, the live-action Blades of Glory, made last weekend ($5,164,364).
The only two other animated contenders are pretty much tapped out as well. Romeo and Juliet: Sealed With a Kiss jumped up one spot over last week to #53, but its only made $293,701 in its 15 weeks in theatres.
Happy Feet is coasting on the last shreds of its Oscar glory, getting another $30,000 in its 24th weekend in theatres. Despite winning the Best Animated Feature Film award, the Warner Bros. flick never quite reached blockbuster status, stalling at $198 million.
It's gonna be a quiet May for animated film lovers until DreamWorks' Shrek the Third makes its debut on May 18th.
