1. "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" ($72.7 million)
2. "The Blind Side" ($10.9 million)
3. "2012" ($8.1 million)
4. "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire" ($3.6 million)
5. "Planet 51" ($3.2 million)
You don't have to be a mind-reading vampire with diamond-encrusted flesh to know who this weekend's box office champion will be. With "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" in over 4,000 theaters nationwide, there was virtually no chance that the continued romance of Edward Cullen and Bella Swan would fall anywhere short of first place — but perhaps no one could have predicted just how far ahead of the competition "New Moon" would end up.
The second "Twilight" installment has already shattered records and expectations by earning $26.3 million from midnight showings alone, decimating the record previously held by "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince." Additionally, "New Moon" enjoyed the single most lucrative opening day in the history of cinema with $62.2 million, a record previously held by "The Dark Knight." Combined with the midnight intake, "New Moon" has already earned $72.7 million — and the weekend isn't even over.
Box office watchdogs aren't necessarily convinced that "New Moon" will take the record for best opening weekend of all time — that distinction is still held by "The Dark Knight" with $158.4 million — but the "Twilight" sequel is likely to earn the fourth highest weekend, according to Deadline Hollywood Daily. Regardless, "New Moon" will almost certainly have the best opening weekend ever for a non-summer movie.
While Friday surely belongs to Edward, Bella and Jacob, there were other new releases in theaters as well. "The Blind Side" took second place with an admirable $10.9 million, though such a result pales in comparison to "New Moon." Third place belonged to last week's winner "2012" with an $8.1 million intake, bringing the film's domestic total to $89.8 million. "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire" earned fourth place with $3.6 million in less than 700 theaters, while newcomer "Planet 51" managed $3.2 million in its opening day.
Are you surprised by the success of "New Moon," or were you expecting these results? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!
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