Skip to footer

Sandra Bullock stars in 'Gravity': Sci-film tops box office again

'Gravity,' starring Sandra Bullock, topped the box office for the third straight week. Sandra Bullock stars in the movie with George Clooney.

|
Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures/AP
Sandra Bullock (l.) and George Clooney (r.) star in 'Gravity.'
  • By Jake Coyle Associated Press

Star power and Oscar aspirations are reigning at the box office, where the space adventure "Gravity" and the Somali pirate docudrama "Captain Phillips" are holding off all comers.

With $31 million over the weekend according to studio estimates Sunday, "Gravity" topped the box office for the third straight week, cementing its status as the juggernaut of the fall movie-going season. It also took in another $33.5 million overseas.

The 3-D Warner Bros. movie, starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, has now made more than $170 million in three weeks. The film's groundbreaking visuals have been particularly popular on IMAX screens, where it made an "Avatar"-like $7.4 million on the weekend.

"Captain Phillips," starring Tom Hanks and directed by Paul Greengrass, also held in second place, taking in $17.3 million in its second week. The Sony film slid only 33 percent from its debut last weekend of $25.7 million.

The two movies and their veteran stars were able to keep three new wide releases at bay: the horror remake "Carrie" ($17 million for Sony and MGM), the Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger action flick "Escape Plan" ($9.8 million for Lionsgate), and the WikiLeaks drama "The Fifth Estate."

The last utterly flopped – a fate predicted by its subject, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange – taking in a paltry $1.7 million for Disney. It's the worst debut this year for a film in such wide release (1,769 theaters).

"It's a very strong lineup that is not budging," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for box-office tracker Rentrak, who noted the primary family choice, "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2," is also holding steady with $10.1 million in its fourth week. "'Carrie' came into a very competitive marketplace."

In a limited release of just 19 theaters, Steve McQueen's highly-anticipated slavery epic "12 Years a Slave," starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, opened with $960,000. The exceptionally high theater average of $50,000 suggested considerable audience eagerness for the already much-lauded film.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Rentrak. Where available, latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. "Gravity," $31 million ($33.5 million international).

2. "Captain Phillips," $17.3 million ($9.1 million international).

3. "Carrie," $17 million.

4. "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs," $10.1 million ($5.1 million international).

5. "Escape Plan," $9.8 million ($9.4 million international).

6. "Prisoners," $2.1 million ($7.3 million international).

7. "Enough Said," $1.8 million.

8. "Fifth Estate," $1.7 million.

9. "Runner Runner," $1.6 million ($4.2 million international).

10. "Insidious Chapter 2," $1.5 million ($6.4 million international).

___

Estimated weekend ticket sales Friday through Sunday at international theaters (excluding the U.S. and Canada) for films distributed overseas by Hollywood studios, according to Rentrak:

1. "Gravity," $33.5 million.

2. "Turbo," $16 million.

3. "The Wolverine," $13.6 million.

4. "Special ID," $12.5 million.

5. "Stalingrad," $12.2 million.

6. "Escape Plan," $9.4 million.

7. "Captain Phillips," $9.1 million.

8. "Prisoners," $7.3 million.

9. "Despicable Me 2," $7.1 million.

10. "Insidious Chapter 2," $6.4 million.

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
Real news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.
What is the Monitor difference? Tackling the tough headlines – with humanity. Listening to sources – with respect. Seeing the story that others are missing by reporting what so often gets overlooked: the values that connect us. That’s Monitor reporting – news that changes how you see the world.
editor@csmonitor.com
Subscribe
Mark Sappenfield
Editor

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

Subscribe to insightful journalism

QR Code to Sandra Bullock stars in 'Gravity': Sci-film tops box office again
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/The-Culture/Movies/2013/1021/Sandra-Bullock-stars-in-Gravity-Sci-film-tops-box-office-again
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe