Hollywood Weekend Box Office Report: June 6 Through 8, 2008

With the summer movie season well underway, it looks like everyone is heading out to their local theater rather than hitting the road and using a lot of gas. According to Box Office Mojo, with no less than six heavily hyped films bringing in crowds, the box office for the first full weekend of June 2008 easily outperformed last year, when Ocean's Thirteen topped the charts with a haul of $36.1 million. That kind of performance would only have managed a third place finish this year.

The weekend was led by the opening of two huge films, Kung Fu Panda, the Paramount/Dreamworks animated feature with the voices of Jack Black and Angelina Jolie. Even with Jolie doing no press due to her pregnancy, the film still managed a first place finish, thanks to an opening on 4000+ screens and a nice marketing campaign. The Adam Sandler vehicle You Don't Mess With The Zohan did well with teens and young adults, with $38.5 million in ticket sales.

Indiana Jones continued to run strong, as it seemed the safe bet for moviegoers of all ages. Sex and the City lost steam in its second weekend, and may not have the lasting power New Line had hoped for. Iron Man is still playing very well, bolstered by great reviews and strong word of mouth. It should be the year's first $300 million film. Narnia has crossed the $125 million mark in ticket sales, but is getting buried by so many new releases. On the flop front, Speed Racer continues to freefall, finishing 14th and managing only $42 million in ticket sales since opening in early May. It's too bad, because it is a fun film, for what it is. Yes, it is silly and overblown, bearing little resemblance to the minimalist cartoon. It does manage to make racing heart-stopping by going so colorful and hyper-realistic, you will be amazed at the digital goodness.

The top ten films for the weekend of June 6-8, 2008, are as follows. Each title is listed with their weekend gross and their overall gross.

1. Kung Fu Panda, $60,239,130 weekend gross; $60,239,130 total gross.
Dreamworks is the new Disney when it comes to animated films. Great commercials made this film a must see for families.

2. You Don't Mess with the Zohan, $38,531,374 weekend gross; $38,531,374 total gross.
Sandler continues to mine box office gold. He's as sure a bet as you can get nowadays.

3. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, $22,793,630 weekend gross, $253,014,750 total gross.
Eventually, every man, woman and child will see this film, despite the reviews.

4. Sex and the City, $21,218,305 weekend gross; $99,177,283 total gross.
It looks like every 40+, self-absorbed, female closet alcoholic with an outrageous wardrobe has seen this. You can put the DVD out now.

5. The Strangers, $8,941,970 weekend gross; $37,298,770 total gross.
This Liv Tyler creepfest could play well as counter-programming to summer fluff.

6. Iron Man, $7,477,439 weekend gross; $288,847,640 total gross.
An actual GOOD Marvel Comics film. Thanks Robert Downey Jr.

7. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, $5,658,836 weekend gross; $125,977,010 total gross.
A smart, entertaining fantasy film that deserves more attention.

8. What Happens in Vegas, $3,437,801 weekend gross; $72,267,894 total gross.
A funny date flick that continues to play well.

9. Baby Mama, $806,750 weekend gross; $57,931,215 total gross.
About as funny as labor with no drugs. Don't let the commercials fool you.

10. Made of Honor, $804,055 weekend gross, $44,689,497 total gross.
Because, of course, most guys would be a maid of honor if asked. Ladies, you think men are deluded?