1) The Butler- 12M Weekend, 68M Total
Unless the One Direction crew can get a ton of new fans this weekend with their concert film, it looks like The Butler will repeat at #1 for a third weekend in a row. It only dipped 33% in week 2, so a similar drop would be likely.
2) One Direction: This Is Us- 10M Weekend, 10M Total
One Direction is hot, but it is still a concert film. It attracts only the fans of One Direction, and no one else. Concert films have had varied results in the past, with Miley Cyrus’s doing well, but The Jonas Brothers just doing so-so, and Glee 3D disappointing. In a slow weekend, One Direction will still look like a winner.
3) We’re The Millers- 9M Weekend, 104M Total
Another slight drop to around 9M is likely for the runaway hit comedy. There is virtually no new competition this weekend, so it shouldn’t drop very much.
4) Getaway- 8M Weekend, 8M total
Ethan Hawke had a good summer with The Purge and Before Midnight, but this just looks awful. I can’t see it being a huge hit, or Selena Gomez drawing any of her (mostly young) fans to the film.
5) The World’s End- 5.5M Weekend, 18M Total
With some solid word of mouth, The World’s End might hold pretty good in week 2.
6) Planes- 5.5M Weekend, 68M Total
Planes will remain the top draw for families this weekend…who don’t have daughters who love One Direction.
7) The Mortal Intruments: City Of Bones- 5M Weekend, 21M total
This is most definitely a flop, and a harsh drop will show Hollywood that there is no interest in a sequel.
8) Closed Circuit- 4.5M Weekend, 5M Total
Hey guys, Closed Circuit actually opened today. Oh, you didn’t notice? Oh. You don’t know what Closed Circuit is? Lets face it, Eric Bana has never been a bankable star, and this forgettable release won’t help his star rise at all.
9) Elysium- 4M Weekend, 74M Total
People will probably rather check out the Matt Damon actioner than the horror flop You’re Next, which only managed a B- cinemascore, and could fall out of the top 10 this week.
10) Could Be Any Of These…
Grandmaster has an expansion this week, after doing well in limited release. A wide enough expansion could help Grandmaster crack the top 10. It is a foreign language pic, so don’t expect too much. The Spectacular Now is also expanding, but likely not enough to hit the top 10. There is a reissue of Star Trek Into Darkness and World War Z as a double feature, but I can’t imagine it doing much more business for both films. Also, You’re Next is likely to drop over 50%, but it might still somehow edge out all those films for the final spot. If that isn’t enough, Percy Jackson is a wildcard, as it has been having small week-to-week drops, and it is still in the mix here too.