Big, buttery summer popcorn actioner wins again! G.I. Joe easily takes the top spot this weekend at the box office with $54.7 million. Savor it, folks, because summer is nearing its end.
Here’s the top five at the box office this weekend:
1. NEW! G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (Paramount) – $54.7 mil; 4,007 theaters; $13,654 PT
2. NEW! Julie & Julia (Sony) – $20 mil; 2,354 theaters; $8,508 PT
3. G-Force (Buena Vista) – $9.8 mil; 3,482 theaters; $2,835 PT; $86.1 mil cume
4. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Warner Bros.) – $8.9 mil; 3,455 theaters; $2,584 PT; $273.8 mil cume
5. Funny People (Universal) – $7.9 mil; 3,008 theaters; $2,655 PT; $40.5 mil cume
Also making a strong debut was Julie & Julia, which is savory for a whole other reason, and the other opener, a surprisingly compact thriller The Perfect Getaway, snagged seventh place with $5.9 million.
And for this coming weekend? We’ve got time-traveling romance (The Time Traveler’s Wife), teenage rock bands (Bandslam), used car dealers (The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard) – and renegade aliens tired of being oppressed. From the tremendous viral campaign, excellent word of mouth, and what Entertainment Weekly says will “Blow Your Mind,” the sci-fi thriller District 9 seems to be the clear frontrunner:
I. Can. Not. WAIT!