With three of the top five grossing films this past weekend, black movies dominated theatres across the country. Stepping into the top spot this Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday weekend was the college step dance drama Stomp the Yard, which surged past expectations in knocking off three-week blockbuster champ Night at the Museum.
Most of the holdovers this weekend saw minimal declines, lead by Paramount/DreamWorks’ hit drama Dreamgirls.
ScreenGems’ low budget college dance drama Stomp the Yard debuted much higher than industry expectations in landing the No. 1 spot this weekend, opening with an estimated $22 million for the Friday-Sunday portion of the four-day holiday weekend. Budgeted at a meager $14 million, the PG-13 pic averaged an incredible $10,726 in 2,051 theaters.
Falling just 29% to an estimated $9.1 million in third was Will Smith’s The Pursuit of Happyness, which continues to show strong legs bringing in an impressive $136.5 million in just five weeks. Budgeted at a modest $55 million, the Sony release should surpass $150 million by the end of its domestic run.
Paramount-DreamWorks’ acclaimed musical drama Dreamgirls slipped just 6.2% to an estimated $8.1 million for fourth, pushing its five week cum to $64.9 million. With awards season in full swing, look for the Jamie Foxx-Beyonce Knowles starrer to climb past $100 million by the time the Oscars roll around.
Black box-office power is not likely to subside anytime soon this season with the upcoming releases of Eddie Murphy’s Norbit and Tyler Perry’s Daddy’s Little Girls in early February.
