Battle: Los Angeles Runs Away With Weekend Box Office Victory

The alien invasion film Battle: Los Angeles topped the box office with a strong performance while the other two openers were big disappointments. Red Riding Hood came in well under expectations while Mars Needs Moms has become a rare bomb for Disney.

The reported $70 million budget for Battle: Los Angeles is hard to believe because of the special effects and marketing push, but regardless the $36 million opening for the film represents a great start on its way to profitability. Not signing on a big name star probably kept costs down more than anything. These type of event pictures tend to play well worldwide. Mixed reviews didn’t hurt the “event” pic which opened in a month typically not reserved for them. It could have questionable legs however as the excitement over release could make it heavily front-loaded.

Red Riding Hood, directed by Catherine Hardwicke (Twilight), was expected to play well to younger females.  While it still hit heavily on that demographic it did not have the strength to produce a successful weekend coming in at just $14.1 million in third place. Mars Needs Moms, the Disney animated film, absolutely tanked with just $6.8 million and fifth place. Considering MNM had a budget of $150 million it is a startling failure.

Last week’s winner Rango fell just 39% to collect another $23 million in second place, while The Adjustment Bureau fell a reasonable 46% to $11.5 million and a fourth place finish. Hall Pass, Beastly, Just Go With It, The King’s Speech, and Gnomeo and Juliet rounded out the top 10.