Cash. Big Cash.
That’s what Skyfall earned at the box office this weekend. Daniel Craig’s third turn as 007 gunned down an estimated $87.8 million in North America, augmenting the $428.8 million it has already made overseas. That’s about $516.6 million overall, for those of you keeping track—and James Bond’s barely cruised through the equivalent of the opening credits.
The domestic opening is the best ever for a Bond film—way more than The Quantum of Solace earned back in 2008 ($67.5 million). And, in another bit of Bond trivia, it already ranks seventh among the franchise’s 23 official entrants (Just ahead of 1979’s Moonraker and just behind 1995’s Goldeneye). In fact, Skyfall’s domestic debut came within a Daniel Craig paycheck of eclipsing the North American earnings of Sean Connery’s first three Bond movies combined (Dr. No, From Russia With Love and Goldfinger earned a total of $92.9 million). Not too shabby for a long-in-the-tooth superspy.
But despite Bond’s return to the top of the box office, the rest of the weekend’s multiplex did just dandy.
Disney’s Wreck-It Ralph, last week’s champ, slipped to second with a still impressive $33.1 million haul. Flight, starring Denzel Washington, coasted to third with $15.1 million. And Argo, Ben Affleck’s critically acclaimed thriller, earned $6.7 million to push past Taken 2 ($4 million) for fourth place.
Most studios gave Skyfall a wide berth, keeping any new releases well outside Bond’s firing range. One notable exception, however, could be found way down in 15th place. Lincoln, Steven Spielberg’s biopic starring Daniel Day-Lewis, scored $900,000. Not too impressive, you say? What if you heard the film opened on just 11 screens nationwide? That’s a whopping $81,818 per screen—the third best per-screen take this year, trailing only The Master and Moonrise Kingdom. (By comparison, Skyfall earned $25,050 per screen.)
Next week, Lincoln rolls wider. Will this set up a climactic showdown between the quintessential British spy and the quintessential American president? I kinda doubt it. After all, some sparkly vampires are due to arrive about the same time.
Final figures update: 1. Skyfall, $88.4 million; 2. Wreck-It Ralph, $33 million; 3. Flight, $14.8 million; 4. Argo, $6.6 million; 5. Taken 2, $4 million. Lincoln finished in 15th with $944,000.
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