Whenever Liam Neeson shows up on an opening weekend with his Taken movies, all the other films know to step aside like the lunchroom bully has hit the schoolyard. There was no exception to the rule this past weekend either, as Taken 3 took the top spot with an estimated $40.4 million dollars. The third film in the series has an estimated budget of $48 million dollars, so this is yet another smash hit for Neeson and the franchise.
Coming in second place was Selma. Even though this is technically the film’s third week of release, it was only available in 22 theaters nationwide before this past weekend. The historical film, which has landed at a culturally significant time, has grossed an estimated $11.2 million dollars and should have strong legs and word-of-mouth throughout the awards season.
Into the Woods crossed the $100 million dollar mark with $9.7 million dollars in its third week in theaters. The musical has been both a critical and financial success, so expect other similar properties to get rushed into production now.
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies fought the good fight, but it dropped from the first to the fourth spot. The film made another $9.4 million in its fourth week of release, as the sun sets on the era of Peter Jackson’s Middle Earth.
Rounding out the top five is Unbroken with $8.3 million dollars for the weekend. Much like the film’s protagonist, the film continues to overachieve at the box office as it crossed the $100 million dollar mark.
Check out the full box-office breakdown:
| TW | LW | Title (click to view) | Studio | Weekend Gross | % Change | Theater Count /Change | Average | Total Gross | Budget* | Week # | |
| 1 | N | Taken 3 | Fox | $40,400,000 | – | 3,594 | – | $11,241 | $40,400,000 | $48 | 1 |
| 2 | 24 | Selma | Par. | $11,200,000 | +1,668.9% | 2,179 | +2,157 | $5,140 | $13,487,000 | $20 | 3 |
| 3 | 2 | Into the Woods | BV | $9,750,000 | -47.9% | 2,833 | +295 | $3,442 | $105,272,000 | $50 | 3 |
| 4 | 1 | The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies | WB | $9,435,000 | -56.6% | 3,402 | -473 | $2,773 | $236,517,000 | – | 4 |
| 5 | 3 | Unbroken | Uni. | $8,368,000 | -53.9% | 3,301 | +111 | $2,535 | $101,602,000 | $65 | 3 |
| 6 | 7 | The Imitation Game | Wein. | $7,624,000 | -1.9% | 1,566 | +812 | $4,868 | $40,840,000 | – | 7 |
| 7 | 5 | Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb | Fox | $6,700,000 | -53.9% | 3,371 | -431 | $1,988 | $99,523,000 | $127 | 4 |
| 8 | 6 | Annie (2014) | Sony | $4,919,000 | -56.3% | 2,856 | -310 | $1,722 | $79,437,000 | $65 | 4 |
| 9 | 4 | The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death | Rela. | $4,825,000 | -67.9% | 2,602 | – | $1,854 | $22,334,000 | – | 2 |
| 10 | 8 | The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 | LGF | $3,750,000 | -50.4% | 2,063 | -442 | $1,818 | $329,525,000 | $125 | 8 |
What did you catch over the weekend? Was it any good? Let us know on the comment boards, , , and !
Source: Box Office Mojo