BOX OFFICE REPORT (SEPT. 20--22): Hugh Jackman Locks Up Weekend Win with 'Prisoners'

Good news, bad news for the weekend. The good news was that moviegoers were eager to see a serious drama, with Prisoners taking the top spot. While the movie originally looked like HUGH JACKMAN's version of Taken, it quickly became clear that Prisoners wasn't looking for the easy money. It's a tough, hard-to-watch drama about a man struggling to retain his humanity after his daughter disappears.



The bad news? The rest of the box office stunk. Insidious: Chapter 2, last weekend's champion, dropped 64 percent, failing to follow up a $40 million-plus opening weekend. The Family brought in a measly $7 million and new release Battle of Year earned $5 million, all of which I'm sure came from people who just wanted to see CHRIS BROWN get punched in the face. The only bright spot down the list was Instructions Not Included, which expanded its theater count and jumped back into the top five.




1. PRISONERS (N)

Weekend gross: $21.43 million / Total domestic gross: $21.43 million / Percent drop: NA

Will Prisoners give Jackman his second consecutive Oscar nomination for Best Actor? In a weaker year, I would say yes, but it looks like a very crowded field this year. I highly recommend catching a screening of Prisoners. It's a nice reminder that there's more to Jackman than just Wolverine's berserker rage.



2. INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 2 (1)

Weekend gross: $14.50 million / Total domestic gross: $60.86 million / Percent drop: 64.0

Thanks to a weak second weekend, Insidious: Chapter 2 now trails where The Conjuring, director JAMES WAN's other 2013 horror movie, stood at the same point. The Conjuring had grossed $83.95 million by this point.



3. THE FAMILY (2)

Weekend gross: $7.00 million / Total domestic gross: $25.64 million / Percent drop: 50.1

If you didn't see The Family already, I don't think there's any incentive to. Nothing standout about this movie.



4. INSTRUCTIONS NOT INCLUDED (6)Weekend gross: $5.70 million / Total domestic gross: $34.26 million / Percent increase: 17.2

Instructions Not Included has yet to open to a full wide release. It'll be interesting to see how the movie fares when it does.



5. BATTLE OF THE YEAR (N)Weekend gross: $5.00 million / Total domestic gross: $5.00 million / Percent drop: NA"Hey, let's go see that movie where Sawyer from Lost coaches a bunch of guys including Chris Brown how to be a championship dance team!" said no one.



NEXT WEEK'S PREDICTIONS1. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 22. Rush3. Prisoners 4. Don Jon5. Baggage Claim



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