Foul-mouthed bears continue to wow UK audiences, as Ted beats out The Dark Knight Rises for the second week running.
1. Ted (513 sites) W/E: £3,174,766 Total: £17,214,269
2. The Dark Knight Rises (548 sites) W/E: £2,196,449 Total: £46,259,177
3. Step Up 4: Miami Heat (396 sites) W/E: £680,052 NEW
4. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days (475 sites) W/E: £602,236 Total: £3,702,877
5. Brave (147 sites) W/E: £574,261 Total: £2,222,395 (Ireland/Scotland only)
6. Ice Age 4: Continental Drift (514 sites) W/E: £532,353 Total: £26,507,381
7. Dr Seuss’ The Lorax (516 sites) W/E: £375,710 Total: £5,962,519
8. The Amazing Spider-Man (314 sites) W/E: £199,304 Total: £25,548,555
9. Magic Mike (324 sites) W/E: £135,108 Total: £8,111,970
10. Offender (68 sites) W/E: £74,154 NEW
Seth MacFarlane’s Ted saw a modest drop of 47% on last week’s chart topping take, but still strong enough to win its second consecutive weekend. The title has earned a whopping £17.21m in just 12 days, marking it as the fasting-grossing original comedy (ie, not a sequel or based on pre-existing properties) in UK box office history. The crude, cuddly comedy dethroned previous record holder Men in Black, which had held the title since 1997 with a 12-day take of £15.67m.
The Dark Knight Rises continues its powerhouse performance, taking a total of £46.26m after just four weeks, topping Avengers Assemble which had only managed £44.98m at the four-week mark. Marvel’s superhero team-up bowed out with a box office gross of £51.84m, something The Dark Knight Rises should have little trouble meeting or even beating over the next few weeks; assuming competition from The Bourne Legacy, Pixar’s Brave and The Expendables 2 don’t nudge it out of the spotlight.
Step Up 4: Miami Heat falls short of franchise expectations, with the politically inclined dance drama opening to just £680,000 and a less than stellar bronze medal position. Compare this to predecessor entries, Step Up 2′s £2.36m and Step Up 3D’s £2.02m, the latest installment has proven a disappointment. Earlier this year, StreetDance 2 opened to an equally poor £608,000, falling far short of the original StreetDance’s £2.49m. It appears the UK cinema going public have lost interest in the dance genre. I can relate.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days fell by a substantial 61% on last week’s £2.39m debut. Meanwhile, Pixar’s Brave only fell by 30%, pulling in £574,261 with a total box office of £2.22m after just two weeks exclusively in Scottish and Irish markets. Expect the critically divisive animation to climb the chart once again, once it opens in English and Welsh cinemas.
Animated rivals Ice Age 4 and The Lorax are performing at very different speeds, with the frosty “quadquel” currently earning £26.51m after six weeks whereas the latest Dr. Seuss adaptation has only pulled in £5.96m after 3. That’s only one-fifth of Ice Age’s performance in half the time, and Brave is nipping at its heels after only two weeks, with extremely limited sites.
This week has seen the early release of both The Bourne Legacy and Brave, with geriatric action spectacle The Expendables 2 previewing this Thursday. Expect Ted’s hold on the top spot to falter next week and don’t be surprised to see The Dark Knight Rises slip down the chart.
Source: The Guardian/Screen Daily
