'Dark Knight' Dominates Again
New 'X-Files' Bombs
July 28, 2008
Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight continued its record-shattering run at the summer box office by earning an estimated $75.6 million in its sophomore frame, the biggest total ever amassed by a film in its second weekend. The new Batman film’s total has reached $314.2 million, passing the $300 million mark in just 10 days--a full six days faster than any film had ever done it before. The Dark Knight has now matched Iron Man’s total that took the old Shellhead some 13 weeks to accumulate. Nolan's second Batman movie should pass the $400 million mark by this time next week--and yes, its total is inflated by higher ticket prices including premium-priced IMAX admissions, but there is no denying the film’s spectacular performance. When it’s all said and done The Dark Knight could end up the #2 film of all time trailing only Titanic’s mammoth $600.8 million.
Overseas The Dark Knight is also doing very well having amassed $126.4 million despite not opening yet in such major territories as France, Germany, Japan, and Korea. The film dropped only 38% in its holdover markets overseas and just 52.3% from its record-setting U.S. opening of over $158 million.
The Will Ferrell comedy Step Brothers, which demonstrated a strong appeal to a young (66% under 25) and mostly male (55%) audience, took the second spot pulling in an estimated $30 million in its debut weekend, while the Abba-fueled holdover Mamma Mia! continued to appeal to older females and finished in third with an estimated total of $17.8 million.
The X-Files: I Want to Believe ended up a distant fourth with an estimated $10.2 million total despite opening in more than 3,185 theaters. The new X-Files movie’s debut fell far short of the first X-Files film’s $30.1 million opening in 1998. With poor reviews (only 33% positive on Rotten Tomatoes), weak marketing, and competition from The Dark Knight, the new X-Files film managed to average just a mediocre $3,202 per venue. The film earned a poor CinemaScore of “C” from its audience, more than 70% of which was over 25. The good news for Chris Carter and company is that the new X-Files film cost under $30 million to produce, and could easily turn profitable if it demonstrates any “legs” at all and manages to reach a portion of the old X-Files audience on DVD. The question is--what, if anything, does this lackluster debut mean for the raft of X-Files-like shows such as Fringe, 11th Hour, and Section 8 that are going to debut on network TV this year? Is the whole “conspiracy theory” thing just so 1990s?
With the exception of Will Smith’s Hancock, which has now racked up $206.4 million in four weeks, The Dark Knight’s long shadow has eclipsed the other superhero films in release. In its third week of release Hellboy II brought in under $5 million while dropping from 5th to 8th. Guillermo del Toro's film has now earned $66 million and will likely top off around $75-85 million. Wanted fell to 10th place, but it has earned a respectable $128.6 million in five weeks and may well end up with a bigger total than The Incredible Hulk, which looks like it will finish up around $133 million.
