The last weekend of August is typically slow at the box office and this year won’t be an exception as Hollywood dumps three new wide releases. Although The Expendables 2 [XPND2] underperformed its predecessor, the action sequel doesn’t have much in the way of competition. The Expendables 2 should repeat at the top spot with about $13 million.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt [LGORD] toplines the actioner Premium Rush [PRUSH] as a bike messenger chased through the streets of Manhattan. Originally set for release in January, the PG-13 rated film was pushed back until after The Dark Knight Rises. However, the move also put Premium Rush closer to another Gordon-Levitt thriller, Looper opening in September with much stronger buzz. Speeding into 2255 theaters, Premium Rush may deliver $9 million.
The Bourne Legacy [BORN4] could gather $8 million in its third weekend, which would be neck and neck with ParaNorman [PNORM] if it decays 45% to $8 million in its second weekend.
Dax Shepard [DHSHEP] gathered his Hollywood friends for the road comedy Hit & Run [HITRN]. Open Road hopes Bradley Cooper [BCOOP] in a supporting role and the R-rated raunchy humor will appeal to young male moviegoers and translate into a The Hangover success on a smaller scale. Despite the heavy marketing push and a wide theater count of 2870, Hit & Run only managed to gross $0.6 million for its Wednesday debut. Hit & Run may struggle to claim $6 million for the weekend.
The PG-13 rated supernatural thriller The Apparition [APRTN] features a fresh young cast of Ashley Greene [AGREE], Sebastian Stan [SSTAN] and Tom Felton [TFELT]. Unfortunately, Warner Bros. has not supported the film with any promotion and has only slotted 810 theaters. The Apparition may scare up just $4.5 million.
That’s the whisper from the virtual trading floor.
Tag(s): XPND2, PRUSH, BORN4, PNORM, HITRN, BCOOP, APRTN, AGREE, SSTAN, TFELT