In a replay of the last two weekends, “True Grit” and “Little Fockers” are once again battling for the top spot at the box office. Friday found “True Grit” in front with an estimated $4.5 million and a new cume of $99.9 million (yes, that close to the $100 million mark). “Little Fockers” wasn’t far behind with another $4.2 million and a new gross of $114.4 million. However, it appears either film could win the weekend depending on how Saturday matinees fall.
As for the weekend’s one true debut, Nicolas Cage’s “Season of the Witch” isn’t a total bomb, but it’s close. The fantasy thriller came in third with $3.7 million. It could do anywhere from $8-9 million for the three-day. Knowing it could have been worse won’t help Relativity Media recoup the picture’s reported $40 million budget, foreign pre-sales or not.
“Tron Legacy” claimed the fourth slot with another $2.7 million and an expected weekend take of $8-9 million. The Disney spectacle will lose a majority of its high grossing IMAX screens next weekend when “The Green Hornet” debuts but has grossed $140.8 million so far.
Fifth place went to the nationwide expansion of Gwyneth Paltrow’s “Country Strong.” The musical drama raised only $2.6 million in 1,424 theaters for what could be a $7-8 million weekend. It’s unclear whether Screen Gems will expand “Strong” further or hope for word of mouth in the heartland to fuel its box office take.
Look for complete weekend estimates tomorrow on HitFix.