Box office report: ‘TRON: Legacy’ races to top with $43.6 mil (never expected this)

TRON: Legacy raked in some thoroughly respectable numbers opening weekend, pulling in $43.6 million. But now, let’s cue a wet raspberry sound. The follow-up to the cult film earned $43.6 million, according to studio estimates from box-office trackers Hollywood.com. The 21st century revisit of the 1982 sci-fi flick “Tron” owned the box office during its debut. Though analysts expected the Disney publicity machine to propel Legacy to the No. 1 spot, science fiction’s limited appeal led most analysts to project the film would take in $40 million. In the new film, Flynn’s son Sam is transported into the digital world while investigating his father’s disappearance.

Legacy did $10.3 million of its business on just 234 IMAX screens. And the costly Reese Witherspoon-Owen Wilson adult comedy “How Do You Know” turned out to be one of the year’s biggest flops, opening to $7.6 million. Audiences shelled out $12.4 million to catch the latest installment in Hollywood’s adaptation of the classic C.S.

“The Fighter,” starring Mark Wahlberg, took in $12.2 million. Other notable expansions and openers included yet another Oscar contender that expanded into wider release this weekend as Fox Searchlight’s twisted and audacious Black Swan waltzed into 959 theaters (up 869 from last weekend) to the tune of $8.67 million. Given Natalie Portman’s bravura performance, director Darren Aronofksy incredible cinematic vision and the extremely strong buzz that has surrounded this movie, this strong performance should be no surprise. The talking bear flick came in at No. 2 with $16.7 million. “But we weren’t even dreaming of that stuff.” Certainly, he could not have dreamed of the financial returns of virtual reality. That’s a far cry from Squeakquel numbers, the Alvin & the Chipmunks period piece that opened to $48.8 million on last year’s Christmas weekend. The film’s total estimated tally now stands at $42.7 million. But at least it’s slightly better than Marmaduke ‘s fate, which opened in June to just $11.6 million. TRON would go on to earn a respectable-if-unspectacular $33 million.

The studio had expected on opening weekend to get fanboys who remembered the 1982 original. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader headed south to No. 3 with $12.4 million, bringing its cumulative two-week gross to $42.7 million. Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp’s glossy thriller “The Tourist” landed in fifth place. The country-hopping caper, which was filmed in France and Italy and also features Paul Bettany, scored $8.7 million during its second weekend on screens. The film was nominated for six Golden Globe awards, including best film drama and best actor in a drama for Wahlberg. “The Tourist,” a thriller starring Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie, was fifth with $8.7 million. Despite an unimpressive start for “Yogi Bear,” which cost $80 million to make, Warner is hoping families with young kids will turn out over the holidays. The fantasy film has earned $42.8 million in 10 days. Check back here next week for big Christmas weekend results. True Grit and Little Fockers open nationwide on Wednesday, December 22, with Country Strong hitting in limited release. 1. Yogi Bear —$16.7 mil. 3. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader — $12.4 mil. 4.

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