Meatballs Win Weekend, Jennifer’s Body Flops

Published by Jeff Leins on September 21, 2009

Sony Picture Animation’s Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs took the top spot at the box office over the weekend.  The 3-D kid flick dominated with $30.3 million, the third largest opening for a September release in history.  Meanwhile, Megan Fox’s latest opened poorly.

The well-reviewed PG Meatballs movie is an animated adaptation of the beloved children’s book by Judi and Ron Barrett and features a comedic voice cast.  It’s total was boosted by an IMAX release and half digital 3-D theaters. I’m looking forward to this one.

In second was the unconventional comedy The Informant! starring Matt Damon as a goofy insider.  The Steven Soderbergh film made $10.5 million, meeting expectations and luring 72% of its audience over the age of 30.  Trust me, it’s funny.

Last weekend’s winner, Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself, fell 58% with $9.9 million.  That guy cranks out the hits, doesn’t he?  More writer/director/actors need to dress up in drag, I guess.

Jennifer Aniston’s 57th romantic comedy Love Happens was about as bland as its title and equally appealing.  It made $8.1 million from people who aren’t sick of her yet.  78% of its audience was female.

The horror movie Jennifer’s Body starring Megan Fox and written by Diablo Cody flopped into fifth with only $6.9 million.  It’s the last of Fox Atomic’s slate, which folded back in April.  Cody has been Tweeting since the news broke of its disastrous opening by quipping, “Team J-Bod is suicidal.”  She’s probably a little more than concerned about becoming a one-hit wonder going from Oscar contender Juno to this failure.  Her Showtime show “United States of Tara” is pretty good though and Toni Collette just won an Emmy for starring in it so there’s that consolation prize.

The rest of the ten were previous releases. Inglourious Basterds tacked on another $3.8 million, passing Pulp Fiction to become Quentin Tarantino’s highest grossing film ever.

3-Day U.S. Weekend Actuals:
1. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs $30.3 million
2. The Informant! $10.5 million
3. Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself $9.9 million
4. Love Happens $8.1 million
5. Jennifer’s Body $6.9 million
6. 9 $5.6 million
7. Inglourious Basterds $3.8 million
8. All About Steve $3.4 million
9. Sorority Row $2.5 million
10. The Final Destination $2.4 million