Score one for high-octane entertainment. Fast Five, the latest installment in the Vin Diesel-anchored The Fast and the Furious franchise, screamed past its competitors for a massive $83.6 million weekend take.
While the fact that Fast Five won the weekend’s box office crown surprised absolutely no one, its margin of victory was noteworthy: It earned six times the amount second-place Rio did, and more than 16 times that of fellow newcomer Prom, which banked $5 million.
Rio still had reason to crow, though. Its $14.4 million gross boosted the animated film above the $100 million barrier, only the fourth 2011 film to do so. For now, the year’s top three films—Rango ($120 million), Hop ($105.3 million) and Rio ($103.6 million) are all animated family films.
It doesn’t appear as though that elite roster of CGI flicks will be joined anytime soon by Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil. The animated sequel was practically devoured by its box office brethren, only managing to stick $4.1 million in its little basket this weekend—a third of what its predecessor, Hoodwinked, pocketed during its 2005 debut (en route to a $51 million run).
Still, it did better than Dylan Dog: Dead of Night. The weekend’s fourth major release made just $885,000—less than what the folks on the set of Fast Five spent on gasoline, most likely.
It’s been reported that Diesel, producer Neal H. Moritz and writer Chris Morgan are already hard at work to bring a sixth Fast & Furious movie to the big screen. Of course, the way oil prices are going, the next installment may have to be scaled back a bit. I’m banking on the the title, Fast Six: Revenge of the Prius.
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