David Yates' "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" stormed to the top of the North American box office this weekend with a solid $79.4 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Since its opening Wednesday, the sixth installment in the popular series has collected a stunning $159.6 million at 4,325 locations. Daniel Radcliffe returns as Harry Potter, who explores the dark past of Voldemort while the forces of the Dark Lord create further terror at Hogwarts and in the world of muggles.

At a distant No. 2, "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" picked up $17.7 million, reaching a domestic total of $152 million after three weeks in advance. Following in third place with $13.7 million was "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," which brought its total haul to $363.8 million.

Last week's box office winner "Brüno" slipped to fourth place, earning $8.3 million for a cumulative gross of $49.8 million. The Larry Charles-directed comedy stars Sacha Baron Cohen as a gay Austrian fashionista trying to become a star in the U.S.

Click to read more ...

Weekend of July 10 – 12, 2009

Sacha Baron Cohen’s “Brüno” jumped to the top spot at the North American box with a solid $30.4 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The Larry Charles-directed comedy debuted at 2,756 locations Friday, beating the opening weekend gross of “Borat” by $4 million. In the film, Cohen plays a gay Austrian fashionista heading to Los Angeles to become the world’s greatest star.

Meanwhile, this week’s second wide release, “I Love You, Beth Cooper,” debuted at No. 7 with only $5 million. Directed by Chris Columbus, the comedy stars Hayden Panettiere as a hot high school grad showing a nerd (Paul Rust) the time of his life.

At No. 2, “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” collected another $28.5 million, lifting its domestic total to $120.5 million after a successful two-week run.

Click to read more ...

Vassup! Sacha Baron Cohen's "Brüno" took the No. 1 spot at the North American box office Friday with an estimated $14.1 million in ticket sales. That's $4.9 million more than the opening day gross of "Borat" in 2006.

In the Larry Charles-directed comedy, Cohen slips into the role of a gay Austrian fashionista who travels to the U.S. to become the world's biggest star. "Brüno" is currently playing at 2,756 locations.

This week's second wide release, "I Love You, Beth Cooper," only made it to No. 7 Friday with $2 million in ticket sales at 1,858 locations. Directed by Chris Columbus, the film stars Hayden Panettiere as a hot chick showing a nerd (Paul Rust) the time of his life.

At No. 2, "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" collected another $8.6 million, reaching a total haul of $100.7 million. Following in third place with $7.6 million was Michael Bay's "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," which brought its cume to $322.6 million.

Meanwhile, Michael Mann's "Public Enemies" picked up $4.3 million at No. 4. Starring Johnny Depp as American bank robber John Dillinger, the flick lifted its domestic gross to $56.7 million.

Click to read more ...

Updated on Monday, July 6, 2009 at 10:57AM by Franck Tabouring

Weekend of July 3 – 5, 2009

“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” and “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” tied for the No. 1 spot at the North American box office this weekend with $42.5 million each, according to studio estimates Sunday.

While Michael Bay’s sequel lifted its domestic total to an impressive $293.4 million after only a little more than a week in release, the third installment in the “Ice Age” series brought its total to $67.5 million.

Playing at 4,099 locations, “Dinosaurs” scored an average of $10,360 per theater, while “Fallen” pulled $10,038 per theater at a total of 4,234 locations. This would put the “Transformers” follow-up slightly behind the animated adventure tale.

Michael Mann’s “Public Enemies,” this week’s second major release,” debuted in third place with $26.1 million. Starring Johnny Depp as American bank robber John Dillinger, the film reached a cumulative gross of $41 million.

Click to read more ...