'Alice in Wonderland' earns $116.3 million
Disney enjoys even bigger launch than 'Avatar'
March 8, 2010, 8:24 a.m.
STAFF REPORT
Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland," starring Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, earned an estimated $116.3 million over the weekend - an even bigger launch than "Avatar."
The film's worldwide gross was a staggering $210.3 million; it generated about 70 percent of its opening weekend business from theaters with 3-D screens.
And IMAX - which pulled "Avatar" from all screens in exchange for Alice - enjoyed its highest weekend gross ever, $11.9 million in just 188 theaters.
IMAX sold out every seat they had for the entire weekend. And Disney counts 65 percent of its weekend gross on "Alice in Wonderland" from 3-D screenings.
But "Alice" also played at about 220 more 3-D theaters than "Avatar," since exhibitors have added more capacity recently.
Meanwhile, "Avatar," which held onto 695 of its 3-D screens, dropped 44 percent, its largest fall since it opened three months ago - still increasing its 12-week domestic take at $720 million.
And catching "Avatar" would be very difficult for "Alice," because most 3-D screens will switch to DreamWorks Animation's "How to Train Your Dragon" on March 26, a sign of the increasingly crowded marketplace for 3-D movies.
The rest of the box office Top 10 finished as follows, according to studio estimates (number of weeks opened in parentheses):
2. Brooklyn's Finest (1) - 13.5 million
3. Shutter Island (3) - 13.3 million
4. Cop Out (2) - 9.1 million
5. Avatar (12) - 7.7 million
6. The Crazies (2) - 7.0 million
7. The Lightning Thief (4) - 5.1 million
8. Valentine's Day (4) - 4.3 million
9. Crazy Heart (12) - 3.4 million
10. Dear John (5) - 2.9 million