Meatballs Rain on Bruce Willis' Parade

Woody Harrelson vehicle dethrones Meatballs in debut weekend

(NEWSER) - Zombieland raked in $25 million to dominate the box office in its debut weekend, easily dethroning Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, which had held the top spot the previous two weekends. The R-rated comic horror movie starring Woody Harrelson drew an overwhelmingly young audience, with 56% under 25, Variety reports. Director Drew Barrymore's Whip It disappointed, taking in just $4.85 million and tying for sixth place with Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story. The top five: More»

Disappointing debuts for The Informant! , Love Happens , Jennifer's Body

(NEWSER) - Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs satisfied hungry audiences this weekend, slurping down $30.1 million at the box office, Variety reports. Steven Soderbergh dramedy The Informant! debuted in a distant second with $10.5 million, just ahead of Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself ($10.1 million). Jennifer Aniston’s Love Happens ($8.5 million) and Megan Fox’s Jennifer’s Body ($6.8 million) opened to disappointing numbers at fourth and fifth, respectively. More»

(NEWSER) - Julia Roberts is poised to step back into the spotlight with next month’s Duplicity, and Hollywood is hoping she can do again what none of her successors has been able to—pull boffo box office, the New York Times reports. “It’s just so clearly there,” said a producer of the industrial espionage-cum-romantic caper, costarring Clive Owen. “I don’t know how we know it, but we do.” Roberts hasn’t headlined a flick since 2001. More»

Despite writers' strike, Hollywood sets $26.7B box office record in 2007

(NEWSER) - Nearly 30 films took in more than $100 million each last year as the movie industry recorded its best box office year ever, reports the Wall Street Journal. The writers' strike, rising costs, and a spate of so-so releases at the end of the year put a damper on an otherwise outstanding 2007 that saw the industry earn $26.7 billion. More»

6 highest-grossing films all have it

(NEWSER) - One key to The Avengers' record success this weekend: its PG-13 rating. The top six highest-grossing movies ever made are all rated PG-13; the rating points to a film that's titillating enough for teens but isn't likely to offend adults, the Los Angeles Times notes. The rating has become a Holy Grail for movie execs, particularly lately. Last year, R-rated movies accounted for 21% of US box office takings—the lowest figure in decades. More»