Ding-dong the slump is dead! After weeks of disappointing returns, the domestic box office is receiving a much-needed boost from Oz the Great and Powerful. The Disney feature opened in 3,912 locations on Friday with an estimated $24.1 million - including $2 million from Thursday and midnight previews. Oz is now projected to earn almost $80 million through Sunday, dwarfing the $34.5 million of Identity Thief, 2013’s previous best-opener. Though any relief from the mediocrity of recent frames is welcome, the Technicolor success of Oz the Great and Powerful should not come as a surprise. Inspired by one of cinema’s most beloved properties and heavily marketed to the family audiences that this year has so badly neglected, Oz the Great and Powerful was all but guaranteed an impressive debut. FilmDistrict’s Dead Man Down also opened on Friday but, as another in 2013’s long-line of unremarkable R-rated releases, the thriller’s prospects for success were never very strong. We’ll have full details tomorrow.
Title |
Friday |
Total |
|
1. |
Oz the Great and Powerful |
$24,113,000 |
$24.1 |
2. |
Jack the Giant Slayer |
$2,520,000 |
$36.3 |
3. |
Dead Man Down |
$1,830,000 |
$1.8 |
4. |
Identity Thief |
$1,800,000 |
$112 |
5. |
21 & Over |
$1,640,000 |
$13.4 |