Vantage Takes the advantage

The ComingSoon.net Box Office Report has been updated with studio estimates for the weekend. Be sure to check back on Tuesday for final figures based on actual box office.

With a strong ensemble cast including Dennis Quaid, Matthew Fox from "Lost" and Forrest Whitaker, Sony's political thriller Vantage Point carved itself a definitive lead at the box office this weekend, grossing an estimated $24 million for first place in 3,149 theaters, averaging roughly $7,600 per site.

Second place was a horse race between the top two movies over Presidents' Day weekend,
Doug Liman's sci-fi action flick Jumper (20th Century Fox) and Paramount Pictures' fantasy The Spiderwick Chronicles, both which grossed roughly $12.6 million in their second weekends. Despite its 54% drop from last weekend, Jumper is being given a slight advantage, having grossed $56.2 million in 11 days, compared to the $43.6 million for the children's fantasy film.

Touchstone Pictures' latest dance hit Step Up 2 the Streets added another $9.8 million this weekend, a drop of 48% from its opening weekend, with a total box office of $41.4 million.

Fifth and sixth place were filled by two romantic comedies with the action-adventure
Fool's Gold (Warner Bros.), starring Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson, amassing another $6.3 million to bring its total to $52.4 million. In its second weekend, the Universal romantic comedy Definitely, Maybe, starring Ryan Reynolds, grossed $5.2 million, down 47% from its opening weekend.

Michel Gondry's Be Kind Rewind (New Line), starring Jack Black and Mos Def, tied for seventh place with the indie comedy Juno (Fox Searchlight). Both movies grossed approximately $4.1 million for the weekend, with "Rewind" averaging roughly $5,000 in just 808 theaters. Enjoying its tenth weekend in the top 10 after opening in limited release back in early December, Juno has grossed nearly $130 million to date, more than all of the other Best Picture nominees have grossed. Last night, the film, lead actress Ellen Page and screenwriter Diablo Cody won Independent Spirit Awards on its way to tonight's awards ceremony, and the movie was down just 11% from the holiday weekend.

Also in preparation for its big Oscar night, Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood (Paramount Vantage), up for eight nominations including Daniel Day-Lewis for Best Actor, saw a ground swell of viewers, reentering the Top 10 with an estimated $2.6 million bringing its total to $35 million. It's Anderson's highest-grossing film in his eleven year career. Its main Oscar competition, Joel & Ethan Coen's No Country for Old Men, also saw a bump back into the Top 12 with $2.3 million, bringing its own total to $64 million.

Opening outside the Top 12, Larry the Cable Guy's third solo comedy Witless Protection (Lionsgate) did worse than last year's Delta Farce, making just $2.2 million in 1,333 theaters, but coming out ahead of the indie comedy Charlie Bartlett (MGM), starring Anton Yelchin and Robert Downey Jr., which ended up with just $1.8 million in 1,222 theaters.

In limited release, the Oscar nominated Austrian film The Counterfeiters (Sony Classics) took in $100 thousand in its opening weekend in 8 theaters, an average of $12.5 thousand per venue.

Based on estimates, the gross of the Top 10 movies was down 11% from the same weekend last year when Ghost Rider reigned in its second weekend over Jim Carrey's thriller The Number 23 and Fox's comedy Reno 911!: Miami.

Click here for the full box office estimates of the top 12 films