The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1 ruled the Thanksgiving box office, leaving just enough room for The Muppets to eke out a strong second.
Jason Segel‘s The Muppets had high hopes for Thanksgiving weekend and the once-fading franchise managed to perform. It was, however, Bella (Kristen Stewart) and Edward’s (Robert Pattinson) blood-sucking romance that kept moviegoers entranced, making Breaking Dawn — Part 1 the clear box office champ again, even if early estimates end up being slightly off. New releases Arthur Christmas and Hugohad soft but decent openings that will likely build over the holiday season.
Why SheKnows says Breaking Dawn is a must-see for Twi-hards >>
Box Office Top Ten: Nov. 25 – Nov. 27
1. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1 $42 million
2. The Muppets $30 million
3. Happy Feet Two $13.5 million
4. Arthur Christmas $13 million
5. Hugo $11.4 million
6. Jack and Jill $10.3
7. Immortals $8.8 million
8. Puss in Boots (2011) $7.5 million
9. Tower Heist $7.3 million
10. J. Edgar $5 million
Bella and Edward finally got hitched in the penultimate Twilight film and Summit Entertainment is raking in the wedding bootie. In spite of giving some viewers seizures, Breaking Dawn — Part 1 banked an additional $62.3 million over the long weekend and already surpassed the $200 million mark in North America. Internationally, the vamps and werewolves have already pulled in an estimated $489 million in just ten days.
From The Muppets to the Indies
The Muppets have officially made their comeback. While the weekend’s haul was not a huge number for a Disney Thanksgiving opening, Muppet-head Jason Segel gave the fading franchise a nostalgic reboot, banking $42 million over the long weekend.
Read about what made SheKnows cheer over The Muppets reboot >>
Happy Feet Two and Arthur Christmas battled for third place, with the only half a million dividing them in early estimates. Happy Feet Two won the slot for the long weekend, but isn’t performing half as well as its predecessor. Arthur Christmas, meanwhile, still has time to build as the holiday nears.
Hugo claimed fifth place, performing well for a Martin Scorsese flick, thanks to the 3D prices. With Hugo set to go wide Dec. 9, the gorgeous homage to both family and the history of film has a chance to build on word of mouth.
The Descendants ruled the limited releases, with My Week with Marilyn taking second. Both will go into expanded releases, while awards season hopefuls Artist and A Dangerous Method are also drumming up buzz.
NEXT WEEK: Dec. 2 – Dec. 4
The first week of December won’t offer the top ten much heavyweight competition, which means the same films will battle it out again, but there are fresh indies and Oscar hopefuls coming out in limited release.
Moviegoers looking for a less mainstream film can check out the Ashley Greene, Kellan Lutz and Gabrielle Anwar family drama A Warrior’s Heart; the Elizabeth Mitchell, Dane Cook, Julie Benz and Barbara Hershey mystery Answers to Nothing; the Bollywood drama I Am Singh, the Japanese crime drama Outrage, the haunting drama Sleeping Beauty; the Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan and James Badge Dale drama Shame or, if in New York, the documentary Lads & Jockeys.
In addition, with Oscar season in sight, 2012 releases Coriolanus and The Lady will each have a one-week Oscar micro-run starting Dec. 2. Coriolanus, a crime drama starring Ralph Fiennes, Gerard Butler and Brian Cox, will hit theaters in Los Angeles and New York; while The Lady, Luc Besson’s biographical love story about Burman activist Aung San Suu Kyi and academic/writer Michael Aris, will only hit Los Angeles.
Still need help choosing a movie? Check out SheKnows movie reviews, set visits and exclusive chats.
Images courtesy of Summit, Disney and Camelot Entertainment
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