'Darkness' Lights Up at B.O.
Darkness Falls, a cheap ($11 million), negatively reviewed (the SplicedWire website said that it proved that "as long as crap makes money, studios will continue to make crap") horror flick, topped the box office over Super Bowl weekend, taking in an estimated $12.5 million, just ahead of last weekend's leader, Kangaroo Jack, which drew $11.9 million. Playing in only 616 theaters, Chicago continued to pack 'em in, as it earned $8.5 million to finish third. Its per-theater average of $13,721 was three times higher than Darkness Falls'.Commenting on the Chicago result, Exhibitor Relations chief Paul Dergarabedian told today's (Monday) Los Angeles Times: "Musicals have been out of favor for so long, but Chicago is beating all the odds and performing better and better as it rolls out." The top 12 films grossed $82.9 million, down 25 percent from the comparable weekend last year (when no Super Bowl game was being played). |
