NEW YORK (AP) — The Kevin Hart comedy “Ride Along” continued to speed through a typically quiet box-office frame, while the monster thriller “I, Frankenstein” couldn’t be roused from the dead.
Universal’s buddy cop comedy “Ride Along,” co-starring Ice Cube, cruised to the top of the box office again, taking in $21.2 million in its second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. The film set a January debut record, with $48.6 million over the three-day holiday weekend.
For the second weekend in a row, Universal claimed no. 1 and no. 2 at the box office, with the Afghanistan war film “Lone Survivor” earning $12.6 million in its fifth week. With a cumulative total of $93.6 million, the relatively inexpensive “Lone Survivor,” starring Mark Wahlberg, will soon cross the $100 million mark.
But “I, Frankenstein” had a sizable budget estimated at $65 million, yet opened with just $8.3 million. Starring a beefed-up Arron Eckhart as Mary Shelley’s famous monster in a modern-day setting, the 3-D film wasn’t screened for critics and came into the weekend with little buzz. Lakeshore Entertainment financed the film, which was distributed by Lionsgate.
Two family films trailed “Ride Along” and “Lone Survivor.” The animated squirrel comedy “The Nut Job” made $12.3 million in its second week for Open Road Films. Disney’s juggernaut “Frozen” added $9 million for a 10-week domestic total of $347.8 million.
Several Oscar candidates sought to capitalize on their recent best-picture nominations. Expanding by a few hundred theaters were “Dallas Buyers Club” ($2 million, $20.4 million total) “12 Years a Slave,” ($2 million, $45.5 million total) “Gravity” ($2 million, $261.2 million total), “Philomena,” ($1 million, $25.8 million total) and “Nebraska” ($1.4 million, $11.6 million total). Also adding theaters was “August: Osage County,” which earned $5 million, bringing its cumulative haul to $26.5 million.
Hollywood will largely cede next weekend to the Super Bowl, except for new releases “Labor Day,” starring Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin, and “That Awkward Moment, with Zac Efron and Michael B. Jordan.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Tuesday.
1. “Ride Along,” $21.2 million.
2. “Lone Survivor,” $12.6 million.
3. “The Nut Job,” $12.3 million.
4. “Frozen,” $9 million.
5. “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit,” $8.8 million.
6. “I, Frankenstein,” $8.3 million.
7. “American Hustle,” $7.1 million.
8. “August: Osage County,” $5 million.
9. “The Wolf of Wall Street,” $5 million.
10. “Devil’s Due,” $2.8 million.
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Universal and Focus are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of Comcast Corp.; Sony, Columbia, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; Paramount is owned by Viacom Inc.; Disney, Pixar and Marvel are owned by The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is owned by Filmyard Holdings LLC; 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight are owned by 21st Century Fox; Warner Bros. and New Line are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a group of former creditors including Highland Capital, Anchorage Advisors and Carl Icahn; Lionsgate is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; IFC is owned by AMC Networks Inc.; Rogue is owned by Relativity Media LLC.
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Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/jake_coyle
