‘Taken’ Takes Super Weekend

Published by Jeff Leins on: February 2nd, 2009

Liam Neeson’s thriller Taken beat up on the competition, topping the largest Super Bowl weekend in history with $24.6 million.  The record 3-day ends the first ever billion dollar January after strong box office numbers through America’s recession.

Even with a busy football Sunday for male movie-goers, the PG-13 actioner performed well above studio expectations (about 57% higher than estimates).  Fox had originally planned Taken a week earlier, but gambled that strong Friday-Saturday numbers would make up for a slow Sunday.  Ticket sales dropped about 65% on the third day, but it still took plenty of cash.  By the way, it’s a good movie.

Part of its success is due to a kidnapped daughter plot, which drew females to the violent Bourne-style movie.  Surprising only 52% of the audience was male.  The $24.6 million is the second largest debut for Super Bowl weekend after last year’s Hannah Montana concert movie.

As for other new pics, Paramount/DreamWorks released a generic PG-13 horror movie The Uninvited, which managed $10.5 million in third place, while Lionsgate forced a romantic-comedy called New in Town starring Renee Zellweger, which flopped at just $6.8 million in a disappointing eighth place finish.

PG comedy Paul Blart: Mall Cop stayed strong in the second spot in its third week.  The hokey family movie made $14 million for a grand total of $83.4 million.  Hotel for Dogs remained in fourth with $8.7 million.

Gran Torino earned another $8.6 million making it the most successful movie in Clint Eastwood’s career (as actor or director).  The movie may have been snubbed for an Oscar nominations, but it made up for it with a $110.5 million gross so far on a budget of just $33 million.

3-Day weekend estimates:
1. Taken $24.6 million
2. Paul Blart: Mall Cop $14 million
3. The Uninvited $10.5 million
4. Hotel for Dogs $8.7 million
5. Gran Torino $8.6 million
6. Slumdog Millionaire $7.7 million
7. Underworld: Rise of the Lycans $7.2 million
8. New in Town $6.8 million
9. My Bloody Valentine 3-D $4.3 million
10. Inkheart $3.7 million