This is rather intriguing, not just to see Kate Winslet’s first screen test for the role of Rose in Titanic, but also to see who’s playing opposite her, suggesting Leo DiCaprio wasn’t the only possibility to play Jack. Winslet sounds more American than she does in the final movie and it appears to be a slightly earlier version of the script, but her Jack here is Jeremy Sisto, who at the time was coming off his success in Clueless. How different things might have been for him if he’d played Jack in the final film. Titanic is now out on Blu-ray in both 2D and 3D.
Think Like A Man Tops The US Box Office
Hollywood has never quite gotten to grips with the African American audience, so that every time a film with a largely black cast does well, it’s treated as a massive surprise. That’s certainly the case with Think Like A Man, which was barely on most people’s radar but scored a huge $33 million opening to top the box office chart.
The film knocked the movie many had expected to top the chart, The Lucky One, into second spot with $22 million. It’s certainly not a bad start for a romantic drama and marks a rare weekend when two female-focussed movies have opened strong against one another.
Disneynature’s Chimpanzee opened in fourth spot with $10.3 million, which is the biggest opening ever for a nature documentary. Take a look below for the US box office top 10 for the weekend of April 20th-22nd.
Rank | Title | Weekend Gross (millions) | Total Gross to date (millions) |
1 | Think Like A Man | $33.0 | $33.0 |
2 | The Lucky One | $22.8 | $22.8 |
3 | The Hunger Games | $14.5 | $356.9 |
4 | Chimpanzee | $10.2 | $10.2 |
5 | The Three Stooges | $9.2 | $29.3 |
6 | Cabin In The Woods | $7.7 | $26.9 |
7 | American Reunion | $5.2 | $48.3 |
8 | Titanic 3D | $5.0 | $52.8 |
9 | 21 Jump Street | $4.6 | $127.0 |
10 | Mirror Mirror | $4.1 | $55.2 |
Hunger Games Tops US Box Office For The Fourth Week
Although it held the top spot more due to a lack of new breakout hits than anything else, The Hunger Games is now the first film since Avatar to stay at number 1 on the US box office chart for four weeks running. It added another $21.5 million to take its total to an impressive $337 million.
That meant the weekend’s main new releases had to settle for second and third spot, with The Three Stooges doing the best, taking $17.1 million. It’s reported that the audiences largely consisted of under-25s, the group who know least about the real Stooges, but who do like the Farrelly Brothers’ brand of comedy.
Cabin In The Woods took third spot with an okay but not particularly great $14.8 million. Despite great reviews, it appears the general audience didn’t take to it, with reports that many disliked it due to the fact it wasn’t the generic splatter horror movie they thought they were getting (and films do tend to get pilloried in the word of mouth stakes if they aren’t exactly what they appear to be from the marketing).
The only other new entry in the top 10 was Lockout, which took a rather disappointing $6.2 million to finish in 9th place. It’s off from most other recent Luc Besson produced action, and suggests audiences didn’t take to its ‘Escape From New York but in space’ premise.
Take a look below for the US box office top 10 for the weekend of April 13th-15th.
Rank | Title | Weekend Gross (millions) | Total Gross to date (millions) |
1 | The Hunger Games | $21.5 | £337 |
2 | The Three Stooges | $17.1 | $17.1 |
3 | Cabin In The Woods | $14.8 | $14.8 |
4 | Titanic 3D | $11.6 | $44.4 |
5 | American Reunion | $10.7 | $39.9 |
6 | Mirror Mirror | $7.0 | $49.4 |
7 | Wrath Of The Titans | $6.9 | $71.2 |
8 | 21 Jump Street | $6.8 | $120.5 |
9 | Lockout | $6.2 | $6.2 |
10 | Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax | $3.0 | $204.4 |
Hunger Games Stays Atop The US Box Office
The Hunger Games has cemented its position as a true movie powerhouse, managing the increasingly rare feat of staying top of the US box office for three weeks, passing through the $300 million mark as it did so. That puts it ahead of all the Twilight movies’ final tallies, suggesting Lionsgate has something truly exceptional on its hands.
However the real battle of the weekend was between Titanic and American Reunion, with many questioning which would end up in the second spot at the US bo office. In the end it was American Reunion with $21.5 million that won out, which was a long way off the last two theatrical Pie movies, but that’s perhaps not unexpected for a franchise that’s been out of cinemas for a decade.
Titanic came third with $17.3 million over the weekend and $25 million since it opened last Wednesday. It’s not an amazing box office take, but with the Titanic anniversary still to come and overseas reporting healthy business, it’s still likely to be viewed as a success by the end of its run.
Take a look below for the US box office top 10 for the weekend of April 6th-8th.
Rank | Title | Weekend Gross (millions) | Total Gross to date (millions) |
1 | The Hunger Games | $33.5 | $302.8 |
2 | American Reunion | $21.5 | $21.5 |
3 | Titanic 3D | $17.3 | $25.7 |
4 | Wrath Of The Titans | $15.0 | $58.8 |
5 | Mirror Mirror | $11.0 | $36.4 |
6 | 21 Jump Street | $10.2 | $109.5 |
7 | Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax | $5.0 | $198.2 |
8 | Salmon Fishing In The Yemen | $0.97 | $4.6 |
9 | John Carter | $0.82 | $67.9 |
10 | Safe House | $0.58 | $124.7 |
Titanic 3D Trailer
They promised its heart would go on and on, and now it’s holding to that, as Titanic arrives back in UK cinemas on April 15th, 2012 – the 100th anniversary of the sinking – but this time converted into three-dimensions.Now the trailer for the 3D re-release is here, but sadly on the interweb, it’s rather flat, so we don’t really get to appreciated whether the extra dimension helps things or not! Oh, and take a look at the new poster below.