'New Moon' has third biggest weekend ever
'Twilight' sequel shattered single-day box office record
November 23, 2009, 2:46 p.m.
STAFF REPORT
"The Twilight Saga: New Moon" brought in $140.7 million in its first three days and pulled in a total of $258.8 million worldwide, according to studio estimates.
The No. 1 domestic debut for "New Moon" was more than twice the $69.6 million haul over the same weekend last year for "Twilight," the first in the franchise based on Stephenie Meyer's novels.
"New Moon" placed third on the all-time domestic chart behind last year's $158.4 million opening weekend for the Batman blockbuster "The Dark Knight" and 2007's $151.1 million haul for "Spider-Man 3."
Among the top-10 all-time openings, "New Moon" is the only one that didn't open during the summer season.
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The movie adaptation of Meyer's next "Twilight" chapter, "Eclipse," arrives in the heart of summer, next June 30.
On Friday, "New Moon" set an all-time domestic high for opening day with $72.7 million, topping the previous record of $67.2 million by last year's "The Dark Knight.
Overseas, "New Moon" debuted in 25 countries and took in $118.1 million.
Opening at No. 2 domestically over the weekend was the Warner Bros. football drama "The Blind Side" with $34.5 million.
The previous weekend's top movie, Sony's disaster tale "2012," slipped to third-place with $26.5 million, raising its domestic total to $108.2 million. Worldwide, "2012" has taken in $449.8 million.
Sony also had the No. 4 finisher with a $12.6 million debut for its animated adventure "Planet 51."
"Disney's A Christmas Carol" finished fifth this past weekend with an estimated $12.2 million.
Lionsgate's acclaimed drama "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire" expanded from limited to fairly wide release of 629 theaters, taking in $11 million (good for sixth place) for an average of $17,500 a cinema.
New releases for Thanksgiving include the Robin Williams-John Travolta comedy "Old Dogs" and the post-apocalypse drama "The Road." George Clooney's animated comedy "Fantastic Mr. Fox" expands into nationwide release the day before Thanksgiving.