Box Office: 21 Scores Again With $5M Friday & $15M Weekend

It looked as though it could be good weekend at America's multiplexes. With Oscar winner George Clooney bringing his directorial skills and charm to Leatherheads (Universal), 2-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster and Little Miss Sunshine's Abigail Breslin in the family-themed Nim's Island (Fox) and Ben Stiller's production company unleashing the film adaptation of Scott B. Smith's The Ruins (Dreamworks/Paramount), studios and exhibitors certainly had high hopes. Instead, it's all too quiet at box offices.

Sony's holdover 21 will score a second consecutive weekend blackjack after grabbing $5.01M on its 2nd Friday. The Kevin Spacey-produced card-counting  thriller should reach $15M for the 3-day, which will be enough to win the weekend and bring its 10-day domestic cume to a healthy $46.4M.

The Clooney-directed Leatherheads, also starring Oscar winner Renee Zellweger and John Krasinski from NBC's The Office, has struggled to only $4.55M on its opening day compared to an equally lackluster $4.1M for Nim's Island. The Foster/Breslin family film will likely wind up #2 for the weekend with about $14.35M compared to $14.1M or so for the period football comedy.

For Foster, Nim's Island is only the 6th-best opening of her career.

ALL-TIME TOP 10 JODIE FOSTER OPENINGS

1. Panic Room – $30M opening

2. Inside Man – $28.9M opening

3. Flight Plan – $24.6M opening

4. Contact – $20.5M opening

5. Maverick – $17.2M opening

6. Nim's Island – $14.35M opening (estimate)

7. Silence of the Lambs – $13.7M opening

8. The Brave One – $13.4M opening

9. Sommersby – $8.1M opening

10. Anna & the King – $5.2M opening

And for Clooney, arguably our most popular movie star, Leatherheads is only the 7th-best opening of his already legendary career.

ALL-TIME TOP 10 GEORGE CLOONEY OPENINGS

1. Batman & Robin – $42.8M opening

2. The Perfect Storm – $41.3M opening

3. Ocean's Twelve – $39.1M opening

4. Ocean's Eleven – $38.1M opening

5. Ocean's Thirteen – $36.1M opening

6. Three Kings – $15.8M opening

7. Leatherheads – $14.1M opening (estimate)

8. Intolerable Cruelty – $12.5M opening

9. The Peacemaker – $12.3M opening

10. Out of Sight – $12M opening

Fox's Horton Hears a Who is continuing to hold strong. The well-reviewed CGI animated film topped $2.6M in sales on Friday, and it'll finish #4 for the weekend with an estimated $9.1M. Horton's new domestic cume will be $131M by Monday morning.

The Ben Stiller-produced The Ruins, a grisly, R-rated horror flick based on a popular novel, scared up just $2.7M on Friday, and that will likely translate to only $7.2M for the weekend, good for 5th place. The market for horror movies that are rated R is dead. Expect to see more films in the genre to show up with PG-13 ratings, appealing to a broader audience like last year's 1408 and the recent Shutter.

Martin Scorsese's Rolling Stones doc Shine a Light (Paramount Vantage) has opened decently at 276 locations, many of those with big screen IMAX presentations. Excellent reviews have helped the film to about $610,000 on its opening day, and it'll likely grab $2.1M for the weekend for a $7,625 PTA, 4th-best Per Theatre Average for the frame.

IFC's Flight of the Red Balloon seems headed for the best 3-day PTA of the weekend. My early rough estimate is for the French film starring Juliette Binoche to finish the weekend with about $18,000 at each of its 2 theatrical engagements. Meanwhile, Wong Kar-Wai's My Blueberry Nights (Weinstein), on 5 screens, should generate about $13,000 per, followed by the Jewish-themed Jellyfish (Zeitgeist), Shine a Light, and Magnolia holdover Priceless, starring Audrey Tatou.

EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY 3-DAY PTA ESTIMATES

1. NEW â€" Flight of the Red Balloon (IFC Films) â€" 2 locations – $18,000 PTA

2. NEW â€" My Blueberry Nights (Weinstein) â€" 5 locations – $13,000 PTA

3. NEW â€" Jellyfish (Zeitgeist) â€" 4 locations – $10,250 PTA

4. NEW â€" Shine a Light (Paramount Vantage) â€" 276 locations – $7,625 PTA

5. Priceless (IDP Films) â€" 26 locations – $6,231 PTA

6. A Four Letter Word (Ebrem Entertainment) â€" 1 location – $6,000 PTA

7. 21 (Sony) â€" 2,653 locations – $5,677 PTA

8. Leatherheads (Universal) â€" 2,777 locations – $5,079 PTA

9. Flawless (Magnolia) â€" 29 locations – $4,655 PTA

10. My Brother is an Only Child (Thinkfilm) â€" 5 locations – $4,400 PTA

EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY FRIDAY ESTIMATES

1. 21 (Sony) – $5.01M – $1,892 PTA – $36.4M cume

2. NEW â€" Leatherheads (Universal) – $4.55M – $1,475 PTA – $4.55M cume

3. NEW â€" Nim's Island (Fox) – $4.1M – $1,285 PTA – $4.1M cume

4. NEW â€" The Ruins (Dreamworks/Paramount) – $2.7M – $960 PTA – $2.7M cume

5. Horton Hears a Who (Fox) – $2.62M – $735 PTA – $124.5M cume

6. Superhero Movie (MGM/Weinstein) – $1.7M – $574 PTA – $13.1M cume

7. Drillbit Taylor (Paramount) – $1.07M – $399 PTA – $23.1M cume

8. Shutter (Fox) – $1.06M – $503 PTA – $21.3M cume

9. Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns (Lionsgate) – $1M – $644 PTA – $35.2M cume

10. 10,000 B.C. (Warner Bros) – $825,000 – $353 PTA – $87.3M cume

11. Stop Loss (Paramount/Dreamworks) – $775,000 – $599 PTA – $6.6M cume

12. NEW â€" Shine a Light (Paramount Vantage) – $610,000 – $2,210 PTA – $610,000 cume

13. The Bank Job (Lionsgate) -$500,000 – $421 PTA – $25.5M cume

14. College Road Trip (Disney) – $485,000 – $284 PTA – $39.7M cume

15. Run Fatboy Run (Picturehouse) – $445,000 – $399 PTA – $3.5M cume

16. Under the Same Moon (Weinstein) – $405,000 – $927 PTA – $7.6M cume

*Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (Focus) – $205,000 – $408 PTA – $10M cume

*The Counterfeiters (Sony Classics) – $87,000 – $757 PTA – $2.4M cume

*In Bruges (Focus) – $67,000 – $354 PTA – $6.6M cume

*Married Life (Sony Classics) – $52,000 – $441 PTA – $824,000 cume

*NEW â€" Priceless (IDP Films) – $41,000 – $1,577 PTA – $175,000 cume

*NEW â€" Flawless (Magnolia) – $34,000 – $1,172 PTA – $240,000 cume

*The Band's Visit (Sony Classics) – $32,000 – $269 PTA – $2M cume

*NEW â€" My Blueberry Nights (Weinstein) – $18,000 – $3,536 PTA – $18,000 cume

*NEW â€" Meet Bill (First Look) – $15,000 – $403 PTA – $15,000 cume

*Planet B-Boy (Elephant Eye Films) – $15,000 – $1,500 PTA – $113,000 cume

*Snow Angels (Warner Independent) – $12,000 – $261 PTA – $213,000 cume

*NEW â€" Jellyfish (Zeitgeist) – $11,000 – $2,680 PTA – $11,000 cume

*NEW â€" Flight of the Red Balloon (IFC Films) – $10,000 – $4,886 PTA – $10,000 cume

*The Grand (Anchor Bay) – $9,000 – $818 PTA – $55,000 cume

*Shelter (Regent) – $7,250 – $725 PTA – $52,000 cume

*NEW â€" Chapter 27 (Peace Arch)- $6,250 – $1,250  PTA – $24,000 cume

*My Brother is an Only Child (Thinkfilm) – $5,190 – $1,038 PTA – $19,502 cume

*Happy Valley (Independent) – $3,713 – $928 PTA – $36,000 cume

*NEW â€" 3 Amis (Independent) – $2,931 – $977 PTA – $2,931 cume

*A Four Letter Word (Ebrem Entertainment) – $1,922 – $1,922 PTA – $18,000 cume

*NEW â€" Sex and Death 101 (Anchor Bay) – $1,881 – $627 PTA – $1,881 cume

*Backseat (Truly Indie) – $1,830 – $915 PTA – $8,788 cume

*NEW â€" The Unknown Woman (Independent) – $1,046 – $523 PTA – $1,046 cume

*NEW â€" Water Lilies (Koch Lorber) – $908 – $908 PTA – $908 cume

*Boarding Gate (Magnolia) – $685 – $685 PTA – $2,192 cume

*NEW â€" Tuya's Marriage (Music Box Pictures) – $636 – $636 PTA – $636 cume

EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY 3-DAY ESTIMATES

1. 21 (Sony) – $15.05M – $5,677 PTA – $46.4M cume

2. NEW â€" Nim's Island (Fox) – $14.35M – $4,085 PTA – $14.35M cume

3. NEW â€" Leatherheads (Universal) – $14.1M – $5,079 PTA – $14.1M cume

4. Horton Hears a Who (Fox) – $9.1M – $2,558 PTA – $131M cume

5. NEW â€" The Ruins (Dreamworks/Paramount) – $7.29M – $2,592 PTA – $7.29M cume

6. Superhero Movie (MGM/Weinstein) – $5.01M – $1,693 PTA – $16.5M cume

7. Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns (Lionsgate) – $3.45M – $2,220 PTA – $37.6M cume

8. Drillbit Taylor (Paramount) – $3.34M – $1,236 PTA – $25.4M cume

9. Shutter (Fox) – $2.99M – $1,409 PTA – $23.3M cume

10. 10,000 B.C. (Warner Bros) – $2.81M – $1,205 PTA – $89.3M cume

11. Stop Loss (Paramount/Dreamworks) – $2.32M – $1,797 PTA – $8.2M cume

12. NEW â€" Shine a Light (Paramount Vantage) – $2.1M – $7,625 PTA – $2.1M cume

13. The Bank Job (Lionsgate) -$1.77M – $1,493 PTA – $26.8M cume

14. Under the Same Moon (Weinstein) – $1.66M – $3,800 PTA – $8.8M cume

15. College Road Trip (Disney) – $1.6M – $939 PTA – $40.8M cume

16. Run Fatboy Run (Picturehouse) – $1.35M – $1,217 PTA – $4.4M cume

*Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (Focus) – $720,000 – $1,431 PTA – $10.5M cume

*The Counterfeiters (Sony Classics) – $375,000 – $3,261 PTA – $2.7M cume

*In Bruges (Focus) – $245,000 – $1,296 PTA – $6.8M cume

*Married Life (Sony Classics) – $192,000 – $1,627 PTA – $965,000 cume

*NEW â€" Priceless (IDP Films) – $162,000 – $6,231 PTA – $296,000 cume

*The Band's Visit (Sony Classics) – $138,000 – $1,160 PTA – $2.1M cume

*NEW â€" Flawless (Magnolia) – $135,000 – $4,655 PTA – $341,000 cume

*NEW â€" My Blueberry Nights (Weinstein) – $65,000 – $13,000 PTA – $65,000 cume

*NEW â€" Meet Bill (First Look) – $50,000 – $1,389 PTA – $50,000 cume

*Snow Angels (Warner Independent) – $41,000 – $891 PTA – $242,000 cume

*NEW â€" Jellyfish (Zeitgeist) – $41,000 – $10,250 PTA – $41,000 cume

*Planet B-Boy (Elephant Eye Films) – $39,000 – $39,000 PTA – $137,000 cume

*NEW â€" Flight of the Red Balloon (IFC Films) – $36,000 – $18,000 PTA – $36,000 cume

*The Grand (Anchor Bay) – $29,000 – $2,636 PTA – $75,000 cume

*Shelter (Regent) – $25,000 – $2,500 PTA – $70,000 cume

*My Brother is an Only Child (Thinkfilm) – $22,000 – $4,400 PTA – $37,000 cume

*Chapter 27 (Peace Arch)- $18,000 – $3,600  PTA – $35,000 cume

*Happy Valley (Independent) – $11,100 – $2,775 PTA – $44,000 cume

*NEW â€" 3 Amis (Independent) – $10,250 – $3,417 PTA – $10,250 cume

*NEW â€" Sex and Death 101 (Anchor Bay) – $6,500 – $2,167 PTA – $6,500 cume

*A Four Letter Word (Ebrem Entertainment) – $6,000 – $6,000 PTA – $22,000 cume

*Backseat (Truly Indie) – $5,000 – $2,500 PTA – $12,000 cume

*NEW â€" The Unknown Woman (Independent) – $3,609 – $1,804 PTA – $3,609 cume

*NEW â€" Water Lilies (Koch Lorber) – $3,133 – $3,133 PTA – $3,133 cume

*NEW â€" Tuya's Marriage (Music Box Pictures) – $2,194- $2,194 PTA – $2,194 cume

*Boarding Gate (Magnolia) – $2,192 – $2,192 PTA – $32,000 cume

Read More at Fantasy Moguls.