“The Hobbit: The Battle Of Five Armies” far exceeded analyst predictions, and will ring in the holiday season with an estimated $56.2 million weekend.
Earlier studio and industry estimates were more than $2 million below than that. The movie will likely end the year as a top-five performer, Variety.com reported.
The Hobbit movie grossed $16.6 million on Friday alone, the first weekend night of the big Christmas holiday.
“Night At The Museum: Secret Of The Tomb” was headed for $17.3 million in weekend sales, and the remake of “Annie” was on track for $16.3 million, according to studio estimates gathered by Rentrak.
Rounding out the top 10 movies this weekend, in the United States and Canada, were “Exodus: Gods And Kings” ($8 million); “Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1” ($7.6 million), “Wild” ($4.2 million), “Top Five” ($3.6 million), “Big Hero 6” ($3.6 million), “Penguins Of Madagascar” ($3.5 million) and “P.K.,” which opened in fewer locations with an estimated $3.5 million gross.
