The Coen brothers scored their highest ever opening at the US box office over the Christmas weekend as their western remake True Grit pulled in an estimated $36.8m on debut.
Starring Jeff Bridges in the role made famous by John Wayne in Henry Hathaway's 1969 original, the film very nearly stole the top spot, but was beaten out by comedy sequel Little Fockers. The third film in the Meet the Parents series, once again starring Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson and Robert De Niro, opened with $48.3m. Both movies debuted on Wednesday in the US.
True Grit, which also stars Matt Damon and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld, has been picking up strong reviews Stateside. It could yet be a late runner for awards season glory, though it was conspicuously overlooked when the Golden Globe nominations were announced last month. The Coens' previous high water mark for an opening was Burn After Reading's $19.1m last year.
Another Bridges film, big budget sci-fi sequel Tron Legacy, was surprisingly beaten into third spot with just $20.1m in its second week of release. It's a relatively disappointing result for a movie which cost an estimated $300m to make but has so far managed only $111m at the worldwide box office. The top five was rounded out by fantasy sequel The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, in fourth spot with $10.8m in its third week of release, and animated tale Yogi Bear, with $8.8m in its second week in cinemas.
Further down the chart, comedy Gulliver's Travels, starring Jack Black in a loose adaptation that might have Jonathan Swift turning in his grave, opened in a lacklustre seventh place with just $7.2m. The film has received generally poor reviews from critics.
Comments (…)
Sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion