Identity Thief Dominates Weekend Box Office

COMEDY FROM UNIVERSAL LEADS THE PACK DESPITE INCLEMENT WEATHER

By Douglas Pucci
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The Northeast experienced Winter Storm Nemo but that didn’t put a damper on the new comedy from Universal entitled Identity Thief. The film, starring Jason Bateman (Arrested Development) and Melissa McCarthy (Mike & Molly), ruled the weekend ending February 10, with $36.6 million in the domestic box office results (according to data from the Rentrak Corporation). Last weekend’s top-grossing film, the zombie comedy Warm Bodies from Summit fell 43 percent to a runner-up $11.5 million.

The weekend’s other new release, the thriller Side Effects from Open Roads, starring Jude Law and Catherine Zeta-Jones and directed by Steven Soderbergh, opened at No. 3 with $10.0 million. Silver Linings Playbook from The Weinstein Company, starring Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, and Jennifer Lawrence, earned $6.9 million, placing fourth. The David O’Russell dramedy has been the recipient of multiple awards this winter, thanks to Hunger Games star Lawrence. The film is projected to cross the $100-million domestic gross threshold by (or before) Academy Awards weekend (Feb. 22-24), its 15th week of theatrical release.

Rounding out the Top 5 was Paramount’s Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters starring Jeremy Renner, with $5.8 million.

In limited release, Koch from Zeitgeist features the life of former New York City Mayor Ed Koch, who passed away on February 1. The documentary was released in just 3 theaters and grossed $28,000, but earned the third-best theater gross average of all the weekend’s films with $9,333.

The top-12 domestic weekend box office estimates listed in descending order, per data collected as of Sunday, February 10, 2013 is available as follows:

1. Identity Thief (Universal): $36.6 million
2. Warm Bodies (Summit): $11.5 million
3. Side Effects (Open Roads): $10.0 million
4. Silver Linings Playbook (The Weinstein Company): $6.9 million
5. Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (Paramount): $5.8 million
6. Mama (Universal): $4.3 million
7. Zero Dark Thirty (Sony): $4.0 million
8. Argo (Warner Bros.): $2.5 million
9. Django Unchained (The Weinstein Company): $2.3 million
10. Bullet to the Head (Warner Bros.): $2.0 million
11. Top Gun 3D (Paramount): $1.9 million
12. Lincoln (Disney): $1.86 million