Christmas Box Office: National Treasure Grabs $14.75M; AVP-R Strong #2

By Steve Mason/Dec. 26, 2007 2:28 am EST

As is the tradition, American's opened Christmas presents and then flooded the nation's multiplexes. National Treasure: Book of Secrets easily won the day, and in so doing may have posted the 2nd-best all-time single day Christmas gross with an estimated $14.75M.

ALL-TIME TOP 5 SINGLE DAY CHRISTMAS GROSSES

1. Meet the Fockers – $19.5M

2. National Treasure: Book of Secrets – $14.75M (estimate)

3. Lord of the Rings: Return of the King – $13.9M

4. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – $12.3M

5. Night at the Museum – $11.7M

With an adjusted 5-day gross of $68.1M, the latest installment in Nic Cage's Treasure has delivered the all-time 13th-best opening 5-day gross of any film in box office history. (Note that I Am Legend at #6, American Gangster at #18 and Alvin & the Chipmunks at #19 all appear on this list.)

ALL-TIME TOP 5-DAY GROSSES FOR FILMS RELEASED DURING THE HOLIDAY SEASON

1. Lord of the Rings: Return of the King – $137.6M

2. Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire – $119.7M

3. Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone – $104.5M

4. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – $102M

5. Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets – $98.4M

6. I Am Legend – $91.1M

7. The Matrix: Revolutions – $83.7M

8. The Incredibles – $77.4M

9. Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring – $75.1M

10. The Chronicles of Narnia – $74.1M

11. Meet the Fockers – $70.5M

12. Monsters, Inc. – $70.3M

13. Nation Treasure: Book of Secrets – $68.1M (estimate)

14. King Kong – $66.1M

15. How the Grinch Stole Christmas – $63.5M

16. 8 Mile – $60.2M

17. Die Another Day – $55.3M

18. American Gangster – $50.6M

19. Alvin & the Chipmunks – $49.4M

20. Casino Royale – $49.1M

The popcorn action scarefest, Alien vs. Predator: Requiem (Fox) proved to be just the ticket, especially for Under 25 Males, and I am estimating an opening day take of $9.48M, making it the all-time 3rd-best single day Christmas opening.

ALL-TIME TOP SINGLE DAY CHRISTMAS OPENING DAY GROSSES

1. Ali – $10.2M

2. Catch Me If You Can – $9.8M

3. Alien vs. Predator: Requiem – $9.48M (estimate)

4. Patch Adams – $8M

5. Cheaper By the Dozen – $7.8M

I Am Legend is just behind AvP on Christmas Day with about $8.85M, which translates to an excellent 5-day of $47.15M. Alvin & the Chipmunks continue strong in 4th place for Christmas Day with $6.66M and on the 5-day scorecard with $39.46M.

Universal's Charlie Wilson's War, featuring what may be Phillip Seymour Hoffman's best performance, had its best day yet with $4.16M on the holiday. The Aaron Sorkin-written, Mike Nichols-directed political yet entertaining film will finish the 5-day with a respectable $15.82M.

Meanwhile, Oprah Winfrey's well-reviewed, Golden Globe-nominated The Great Debaters appears to have beaten Sweeney Todd on Tuesday$3.49M – $2.82M. The Johnny Depp/Helena Bonham Carter musical directed by Tim Burton finishes the 5-day with $13.92M, impressive given the unusual nature of the project.

Juno (Fox Searchlight expanded to just under 1,000 screens and the Golden Globe-nominated comedy generated $2.31M on Christmas Day with a healthy PTA of $2,325. With breakthrough performances for Ellen Page, Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman, Juno grabbed $6.27M for the 5-day, a solid #11 finish.

With P.S. I Love You (Warner Bros) with a $1.92M Tuesday and Walk Hard with an easy softer $1.29M, the other major story is the performance of Rob Reiner's The Bucket List. With an oldster cast including Oscar winners Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, Bucket is an unqualified specialty hit with a $10,812 PTA at its 16 locations on Christmas Day.

EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY CHRISTMAS DAY ESTIMATES

1. NEW – National Treasure: Book of Secrets (Disney) – $14.75M, $2,639 PTA [$68.1M cume]

2. NEW – Alien vs. Predator: Requiem – $9.48M, $3,700 PTA [$9.48M cume]

3. I Am Legend (Warner Bros.) – $8.85M, $2,445 PTA [$151.1M cume]

4. Alvin and the Chipmunks (Fox) – $6.66M, $1,905 PTA [$95.3M cume]

5. NEW Charlie Wilson's War (Universal) – $4.16M, $1,617 PTA [$15.82M cume]

6. NEW – The Great Debaters (Weinstein/MGM) – $3.49M, $3,000 PTA [$3.49M cume]

7. NEW Sweeney Todd (Dreamworks/Paramount) – $2.82M, $2,261 PTA [$13.29M cume]

8. Juno (Fox Searchlight) – $2.31M, $2,325 PTA [$9.2M cume]

9. NEW – The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (Sony) – $2.25M, $810 PTA [$2.25M cume]

10. NEW P.S. I Love You (Warner Bros.) – $1.92M, $786 PTA [$9.1M cume]

11. The Golden Compass (New Line) – $1.38M, $611 PTA [$50.8M cume]

12. NEW Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (Sony) – $1.29M, $490 PTA [$5.99M cume]

13. Enchanted (Disney) – $1.18M, $534 PTA [$100.5M cume]

14. Atonement (Focus) – $620,000, $2,026 PTA [$6.6M cume]

15. The Kite Runner (Paramount Vantage) – $530,000, $1,406 PTA [$2.6M cume]

*No Country for Old Men (Miramax) – $440,000, $458 PTA [$37.1M cume]

*NEW – The Bucket List (Warner Bros) – $173,000, $10,812 PTA [$170,000 cume]

*The Savages (Fox Searchlight) – $130,000, $1,831 PTA [$954,000 cume]>

*The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Miramax) – $60,000, $1,429 PTA [$505,639 cume]

* NEW Steep (Sony Classics) – $5,509, $324 PTA [$35,206 cume]

*NEW Blonde Ambition (First Look) – $283, $35 PTA [$1,777 cume]

*NEW Flakes (IFC Films) – $34, $34 PTA [$289 cume]

EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS 5-DAY ESTIMATES

- including Christmas Day -

1. NEW – National Treasure: Book of Secrets (Disney) – $68.1M, $17,773 PTA [$68.1M cume]

2. I Am Legend (Warner Bros.) – $47.15M, $13,025 PTA [$151.1M cume]

3. Alvin and the Chipmunks (Fox) – $39.46M, $11,279 PTA [$95.3M cume]

5. NEW Charlie Wilson's War (Universal) – $15.82M, $6,147 PTA [$15.82M cume]

6. NEW Sweeney Todd (Dreamworks/Paramount) – $13.29M, $10,647 PTA [$13.29M cume]

7. NEW – Alien vs. Predator: Requiem – $9.48M, $3,700 PTA [$9.48M cume]

8. NEW P.S. I Love You (Warner Bros.) – $9.15M, $3,732 PTA [$9.15M cume]

9. The Golden Compass (New Line) – $6.38M, $2,820 PTA [$50.8M cume]

10. Enchanted (Disney) – $6.3M, $2,832 PTA [$100.5M cume]

11. Juno (Fox Searchlight) – $6.27M, $6,287 PTA [$9.27M cume]

12. NEW Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (Sony) – $5.99M, $2,263 PTA [$5.99M cume]

13. NEW – The Great Debaters (Weinstein/MGM) – $3.49M, $3,000 PTA [$3.49M cume]

14. Atonement (Focus) – $2.88M, $9,430 PTA [$6.6M cume]

15. No Country for Old Men (Miramax) – $2.69M, $2,807 PTA [$37.1M cume]

*NEW – The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (Sony) – $2.25M, $810 PTA [$2.25M cume]

*The Kite Runner (Paramount Vantage) – $1.98M, $5,260 PTA [$2.6M cume]

*The Savages (Fox Searchlight) – $377,000, $5,311 PTA [$954,000 cume]

*The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Miramax) – $215,000, $5,119 PTA [$505,639 cume]

*NEW – The Bucket List (Warner Bros) – $173,000, $10,812 PTA [$170,000 cume]

*NEW Steep (Sony Classics) – $35,206, $2,071 PTA [$35,206 cume]

*NEW Blonde Ambition (First Look) – $1,777, $222 PTA [$1,777 cume]

*NEW Flakes (IFC Films) – $289, $289 PTA [$289 cume]