One week after debuting impressively, yet still behind the juggernaut that is "Revenge of the Sith," "Madagascar" snagged the #1 box office spot in its second weekend of release. (But don’t feel too bad for George Lucas‘ baby; it’s now the fastest movie to gross over $300 million.) The DreamWorks animated comedy "Madagascar" beat out a trio of multiplex newcomers to grab the top spot, grossing $28.7 million in its second frame.
In second place was last weekend’s "The Longest Yard," which pulled in $26.1m, and "Sith" fell to third (by only the slightest of margins) with a weekend tally of $26m. Debuting in fourth place was the Ron Howard / Russell Crowe boxing drama "Cinderella Man," which did pretty decently by grossing $18.6m (in 2,800 theaters) during its first three days, while "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" (nearly 2,600 screens) debuted in the fifth spot with a total of $10.2m. The weekend’s only other newcomer, Catherine Hardwicke‘s "Lords of Dogtown," raked in a relatively unimpressive $5.7m from nearly 1,900 screens.
Next week sees the release of four films that couldn’t really be any different. The big ticket looks to be Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in the action flick "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," but the kids will want to see Robert Rodriguez‘s "The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl in 3-D," and those looking for laughs might just line up to see "The Honeymooners." And those who have a taste for the creepy stuff will undoubtedly be making a beeline towards Lions Gate’s French horror flick "High Tension."
For a closer look at the multiplex money-makers, feel free to stop by the Rotten Tomatoes Box Office Page!
