Friday Box Office Analysis (6/10)

Brad Pitt and Anjelina Jolie saw their biggest box office debut of their career on Friday, as the action flick Mr. and Mrs. Smith brought in a mammoth $18.6 million in ticket sales for an explosive $5,424 average in 3,424 theaters. In comparison, last summer?s epic Troy, which featured Pitt, took in $17.1 million ($5,000/screen), and Jolie?s breakout, the first Tomb Raider, had raked in $17.6 million ($5,327/screen). The blockbuster figure for Smith is extremely impressive given that Tomb Raider already had a giant built-in audience from the video game, and since then Jolie?s track record has not exactly been hot.

The debut is in line with The Bourne Supremacy, which had grossed $18.4 million and averaged $5,825/screen in 3,165 theaters. Mr. and Mrs. Smith was advertised as being ?From the director of The Bourne Identity,? which might have led many to believe that Doug Liman (director of Smith) was also behind Supremacy, and he was not. The Bourne Identity and Supremacy were action flicks that moviegoers liked quite a bit, which supplied a promise here.

All the tabloid gossip over Pitt and Jolie?s real-life romance no doubt helped the buzz on Smith, and that combined with the promise of True Lies-style action managed to get its ticket sales flirting with Will Smith?s sci-fi blockbuster, I, Robot ($18.1 million - $5,284/screen). Will Smith also tends to have crossover appeal, racially, which makes Mr. Smith?s debut even more noteworthy.

I, Robot and The Bourne Supremacy saw small boosts (of 6% each) in their second day of release, while other such action fare, S.W.A.T., Charlie?s Angels 2, and Bad Boys II saw slight second day declines (of 4%, 11%, and 4%, respectively). Two of those three titles were indeed sequels, and so there was the inevitable rush-out effect. A slight second day boost could be in order, which could give Mr. and Mrs. Smith a huge weekend take of roughly $52.0 million.

Robert Rodriguez tried to capitalize off his success of Spy Kids with The Adventures of Shark Boy & Lava Girl, and ended up coming short. The family picture grossed $3.9 million on Friday for a mild $1,487 per-screen in 2,655 theaters. In comparison, the first Spy Kids took in $6.8 million in 3,104 theaters, while the sequel managed $5.2 million in 3,307 theaters. Spy Kids 3, however, was presented in 3-D just like Lava Girl, and launched to a $12.1 million first-day take. The 3-D aspect unquestionably had made the big difference in ticket sales for part three, but Shark Boy & Lava Girl is not a recognizable concept like Spy Kids had been. A second day boost in the area of Spy Kids 2?s figure (25%) could be in store for Lava Girl, followed by a potentially sturdy Sunday tally with matinees. A weekend gross of about $12.0 million should follow.

The Honeymooners, a remake of the 1955 television series of the same name, bombed with $1.8 million in ticket sales on Friday, averaging a slow $964/screen in 1,912 theaters. The comedy, which features Cedric the Entertainer (in a very oddly cast move), only slightly outpaced the debut of The Cookout, which grossed $1.5 million in 1,303 theaters for a $1,171 average. The movie lacked an ad-campaign and solid selling points, although the performance was considerably better than Anthony Anderson?s comedy, King?s Ransom, which debuted to $622,000 on opening day for an absolutely embarrassing $412 average in 1,508 theaters. For the weekend, The Honeymooners should be in line with The Cookout at about $5.0 million.