I like the picture we’re running today for our Movie Monday blog—the Lorax staring at a tree stump, hands turned upward in a gesture of remorse, maybe even apology. It feels almost metaphorical for this weekend’s box-office tourney, actually. The Lorax would represent—well, The Lorax, which scored an estimated $39.1 million to win the crown. And the tree? Well, that would be John Carter.
I’m sure Disney hoped that its lavish, exciting and incredibly expensive adventure story would tower over the box office this weekend like a truffula tree in full truffle—leaving audiences breathless and gasping for a sequel. Instead, audiences gasped, “Who’s John Carter?” and opted to again watch some CGI goldfish harmonize.
Not that Disney was crying in its cupcakes. The film’s $30.6 million outperformed some of the more pessimistic estimates floating around (ew.com figured John Carter would be lucky to take home $26 mil), and its overseas tally pushed JC over the $100 million mark worldwide. But considering the film cost an estimated $250 million to make, Carter may need to do well in some otherworldly markets, too, if Disney hopes to bring a sequel to the screen. Maybe the Mouse House can arrange for some screenings on Mars.
Meanwhile, The Lorax is doing just fine on Earth, thank you. After making $122 million in two weeks, the animated flick is 2012’s No. 1 film, overtaking The Vow.
Project X’s box-office party carried into a second week, rocking its way to another $11.6 million and a third-place finish. Newcomer Silent House made a little noise, whispering up about $7 million to challenge Act of Valor for fourth place.
As for the weekend’s third “big” movie—Eddie Murphy’s A Thousand Words—well, words can’t really describe the level of floppishness here. It took home $6.4 million to finish sixth. But at least it wasn’t an unexpected flop. According to Time, the film was finished four years ago but not released until now—during which time such Eddie Murphy classics like Imagine That and Meet Dave thrilled, oh, dozens of fans in theaters.
Still, let us not feel too sorry for the talented Murphy. He’s still got Shrek.
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