The YA adaptation genre was alive and well at the box office this weekend, but the same couldn’t be said for The Muppets.
In at number 1 is Divergent (read our review) with $56 million. While the inevitable comparisons to Twilight and The Hunger Games are apt considering Divergent is another hopeful YA franchise-starter, the film’s success proves that a lot more is required (strong cast, proven director, etc.) of these first films beyond the source material.
While Lionsgate/Summit had already greenlit Divergent‘s follow-up, Insurgent, the first film’s performance proves the studio has likely found their next big franchise. But first we’ll have to see how Divergent performs during its all-important second weekend.
Coming in at number 2 is Muppets Most Wanted (read our review) with $16.5 million. That’s well behind The Muppets‘ $29.2 million, but that film did release over the more lucrative Thanksgiving weekend.
All told, Muppets Most Wanted should hold well thanks to families, but it will struggle to make more than about $50 million. Depending on how well Muppets Most Wanted does worldwide and home video, this could be the last we see of the iconic felt characters for a while.
Mr. Peabody & Sherman comes in at number 3 with $11.7 million. While Muppets Most Wanted likely siphoned off a large portion of Mr. Peabody‘s audience, the Fox Animation film has still accrued a very strong $81 million domestic over three weeks and $183 million worldwide.
In at number 4 is 300: Rise of an Empire with $8.6 million, which brings its domestic total up to $93 million. While 300: Rise of an Empire is well behind its predecessor, it has accrued $289 million worldwide.
Rounding out the top 5 is the Christian drama God’s Not Dead with a surprising $8.6 million. Many expected that God’s Not Dead would do well enough to make the top 10, but few thought it would do as well as it did. What’s more, God’s Not Dead‘s opening weekend tally is one of the best for a Christian-themed film.
Coming in at number 6 is Need for Speed with $7.7 million, which brings its domestic total up to $30 million after two weeks. While Need for Speed has struggled to find an audience in North America, it has actually done pretty well for itself overseas, maybe even well enough to earn a sequel. So far, the film has grossed $126 million worldwide.
Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel (read our review) is the number 7 film with $6.7 million. Despite an increase in theaters, The Grand Budapest Hotel continues to post strong per screen averages, well beyond what is expected of art house films. It might not be the highest grossing Wes Anderson release when all is said and done, but The Grand Budapest Hotel will certainly be up there.
Non-Stop is the number 8 film this weekend with $6.3 million. While this latest Liam Neeson action flick continues to drop week after week, it has still done very well for itself. Non-Stop is currently at $78 million domestic.
In at number 9 is The LEGO Movie with $4.1 million, which brings its domestic total up $243 million. There isn’t much to say about The LEGO Movie that hasn’t already been said several times before – it’s the highest grossing film of the year (so far) and already secured a follow-up in 2017.
Rounding out the top 10 is Tyler Perry’s The Single Moms Club with $3.1 million. With only $12 million earned after two weeks, The Single Moms Club is on pace to finish as one of the poorest performing of Tyler Perry’s films.
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[NOTE: These are only weekend box office estimates – based on Friday and Saturday ticket sales coupled with adjusted expectations for Sunday. Official weekend box office results will be released on Monday, March 24th – at which time we’ll update this post with any changes.]
