It’s sci-fi vs. cartoons this weekend. Last night, Ridley Scott’s “Prometheus” finished in the number 1 spot with $21.4 million. That’s exactly $1 million more than “Madagascar 3,” the latest animated episode in the series from Dreamworks Animation. The rest of the pack–from “Show White” to a fading “Men in Black 3”–were far behind.
The question now is, can “Prometheus” hold on today and tomorrow, or will Saturday and Sunday matinees push “Mad 3” past them. Either way, “Prometheus” is a nice sized hit, and a boost to the box office for something that isn’t a sequel. Good for Ridley Scott and co.!
The other big story is that “Exotic Marigold Hotel” is just the little engine that could. It racked up almost $1 million last night, bringing its US total to over $28 mil. Abroad it’s already made $82 million. The British indie film didn’t have a lot of promotion here, but the names– Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Bill Nighy–meant something to the intelligent adult audience. Well played! And let’s not forget John Madden directed it–he directed “Shakespeare in Love” among other top films.
