The box office results for the 2013 Labor Day weekend has Lee Daniels’ The Butler holding off another weak batch of newbies for the second straight week. Here are the four-day studio estimates:
1. Lee Daniels’ The Butler ($20 million)
2. One Direction: This Is Us ($18 million)
3. We’re the Millers ($15.9 million)
4. Planes ($10.6 million)
5. Instructions Not Included ($10 million)
6. The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones ($6.8 million)
7. The World’s End ($6 million)
8. Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters ($6 million)
9. Getaway ($5.5 million)
10. Blue Jasmine ($5.3 million)
Analysis
In three weeks of release, Lee Daniels’ The Butler has steadily held up very well thanks to strong word-of-mouth and a serving of lackluster summer close-out competition. The $30 million historical drama is now up to $79.2 million domestically.
As for the newbies, the concert documentary showcasing the latest musical fad, One Direction, hit solidly. While the production budget was just $10 million, and surely fans will buy/download multiple copies of the home video release after it exits theaters, these products tend to experience a major drop in its second weekend as they’re usually front-loaded. And that held true for even the likes of Justin Bieber and Katy Perry’s respective concert-docs.
Getaway never quite got out of the starting blocks, as the Warner Bros. release will not reach its production budget of $18 million. But at least they can say they had the last Flopper of the summer!
The little known and under-marketed, Instructions Not Included, came out of nowhere – in limited release fashion no less (only played in 387 theaters). The comedy/drama from Mexico only rang up a $5 million production bill and is well on its way to the black ink as it continues to expand over the next few weeks.
This Friday kicks-off the Fall movie season, and the curtain-jerker strangely feels like a summer leftover. Welcome back Vin Diesel in Riddick. Review will be right here my fellow Shockers!
