'Sniper' shoots down Super Bowl weekend record with $31.9M
By JAKE COYLE, Associated Press
Feb 1, 2015 10:55 AM CST
This photo released by Paramount Pictures shows, Jonny Weston as David Raskin, in a scene from the film, "Project Almanac," from Insurge Pictures, in association with Michael Bay. (AP Photo/Paramount Pictures, Guy D'Alema)   (Associated Press)

NEW YORK (AP) — "American Sniper" has shot down another box-office record: Its $31.9 million is the biggest Super Bowl weekend gross ever.

According to studio estimates Sunday, the Clint Eastwood film narrowly surpassed the previous top Super Bowl weekend draw. The concert film "Hanna Montana/Miley Cyrus: The Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour" earned $31.1 million earned in 2008.

Hollywood often avoids competing with the Super Bowl, but "American Sniper" has proven an unlikely sensation. It has now made $248.9 million in six weeks, making it the most lucrative war movie without adjusting for inflation.

The competition was thin. The animated adaptation "Paddington" came in a distant second with $8.5 million, in a virtual tie with Paramount's found-footage thriller "Project Almanac."

Kevin Costner's "Black or White" opened in fourth with $6.5 million.

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