Faced with a choice between a post-Apocalyptic science-fiction thriller and a broad American comedy last weekend, Australian cinemagoers chose the latter.
The Internship, the Googleplex-set caper starring Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn, raked in $2.3 million in its opening frame, beating After Earth, the father-and-son survival saga featuring Will Smith and Jaden Smith, which made $1.8 million.
That was a reversal of their US debuts where the M. Night Shyamalan-directed After Earth fetched $27.5 million- a mediocre result for a film that cost $130 million- and The Internship collected $17.3 million.
One Australian exhibitor had a hunch the comedy with two popular actors would resonate more strongly than the sci-fi film which he derided as boring. That’s another dud for the director after The Last Airbender.
Neither opener could match the second weekend of Fast & Furious 6, which has amassed $20 million so far, or the third frame of The Great Gatsby, which has earned $19 million. Baz Luhrmann’s romantic drama has reached $140 million in the US and $300 million worldwide.
In the specialty arena writer-director Jeff Nichols’ Mud, a coming-of-age drama featuring Matthew McConaughey, Michael Shannon, Reese Witherspoon, Tye Sheridan and Jacob Lofland, unearthed a splendid $45,000 at just three cinemas.
However there was a muted response to A Lady in Paris, which follows Jeanne Moreau as a retired Estonian expatriate who tries to win back her former younger lover; it took $36,000 on 17 screens.
WEEKEND BOX OFFICE June 13-16
|
|
Title |
Week/ Screens |
Box Office |
% +- |
Total
|
|
1 |
Fast & Furious 6 |
2/490 |
$4,683,316 |
-58 |
$20,124,478 |
|
2 |
The Great Gatsby |
3/566 |
2,772,002 |
-39 |
19,243,743 |
|
3 |
The Internship |
1/263 |
2,318,571 |
NA |
2,318,571 |
|
4 |
Despicable Me 2 |
PV/395 |
2,177,245 |
NA |
2,177,245 |
|
5 |
After Earth |
1/258 |
1,875,029 |
NA |
1,971,102 |
|
6 |
The Hangover Part 111 |
4/303 |
836,395 |
-57 |
20,241,593 |
|
7 |
Star Trek Into Darkness |
6/167 |
246,758 |
-60 |
15,973,254 |
|
8 |
Iron Man 3 |
8/93 |
126,588 |
-70 |
39,169,421 |
|
9 |
The Place Beyond the Pines |
6/56 |
71,167 |
-48 |
2,745,808 |
|
10 |
The Reluctant Fundamentalist |
4/26 |
70,464 |
-23 |
527,820 |
Source: Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia