Sequels duked it out at the holiday box office, with a fourth “Mission: Impossible” triumphing over a second “Sherlock Holmes” to walk away with the (estimated) box office crown.
Monitoring figures for the Friday-Sunday frame, Brad Bird’s thrilling “Ghost Protocol” earned an estimated $26.5 million, putting it ahead of Guy Ritchie’s second “Holmes,” which grabbed $17.8M in its second stint. That marked a 55% drop in attendance for “Game of Shadows.” To date, the explosive sequel has pocketed $76.5M. Could a third “Sherlock Holmes” happen if these figures persist?
Elsewhere, as Oscar contenders entered the marketplace, David Fincher’s bleak “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” earned $21.4 million since opening late last Tuesday. And Steven Spielberg’s newcomer, “The Adventures of Tintin,” posted a $17.1 million figure since opening on Dec. 21. (The Oscar-winning director also opened “War Horse” on Christmas Day, and we’ll track that film’s progress all week.)
Fox can’t be thrilled with “We Bought a Zoo,” which earned an estimated $7.8 million, for a sixth-place finish on the weekend. It leads us to question if the two paid sneaks that took place weeks ago bit into Cameron Crowe’s potential box office.
And the studio’s third “Alvin and the Chipmunks” isn’t meeting the financial levels of its predecessors. Each passed the $200 million mark, while “Chipwrecked” sits at $50.2M after two weekends.
