Box Office Report: Mockingjay Flies, Not Soars, To 2014’s Biggest Opening

Remaining in second this weekend was 3D action-adventure Big Hero 6, which dipped 42% to earn $20.1 million. That is a slightly better hold than Wreck-it Ralph had against the final Twilight installment in November 2012. With a $135.7 million take and Thanksgiving weekend coming soon, Big Hero 6 will likely close with around $200 million. The wild card is how successful The Penguins of Madagascar will be once it opens on Nov. 26 and whether Disney’s film can keep its audience.

In third was Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar, which made $15.1 million, a drop of 47%. Clearly, word-of-mouth on the space-set film is not as electric as other Nolan blockbusters like Inception or The Dark Knight. Regardless, with $120.1 million and IMAX auditoriums continuing to do well, a final of around $160 million (almost the film’s budget) seems like a good ending mark.

Down in fourth place was Dumb and Dumber To, which plummeted 62% after its first-place finish last weekend. With $13.8 million in its sophomore weekend, it is likely that fans of the film came out for opening weekend. The film has $57.5 million in its coffers so far, and should end its run with around $85 million. Elsewhere on the top 10, for the eighth straight weekend, Gone Girl finished in the Top Five, although it had its steepest drop yet (likely due to The Hunger Games‘ big opening). It earned another $2.8 million to add to its mammoth $156.8 million total. It dropped 38% in its eighth round.

Meanwhile, it was another strong weekend for Oscar hopeful The Theory of Everything, which expanded to 140 theaters and finished in the Top 10 with $1.5 million. With a $2.8 million tally so far, the drama starring Eddie Redmayne should continue to bring in moviegoers throughout awards season. Its box office performance has been very similar to Focus’ awards hopeful from 2013, Dallas Buyers Club, and, like McConaughey, Redmayne could be on his way to a Best Actor Oscar.

Here are the numbers for the Top 10 films at the North American box office for the weekend of November 21 through 23, 2014:

1. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 – $123 million (NEW)
2. Big Hero 6 – $20.1 million ($135.7 million total)
3. Interstellar – $15.1 million ($120.7 million total)
4. Dumb and Dumber To – $13.8 million ($57.5 million total)
5. Gone Girl – $2.8 million ($156.8 million total)
6. Beyond the Lights – $2.6 million ($10.1 million total)
7. St. Vincent – $2.4 million ($36.6 million total)
8. Fury – $1.9 million ($79.2 million total)
9. Birdman – $1.9 million ($14.4 million total)
10. The Theory of Everything – $1.5 million ($2.8 million total)

NOTE: These numbers are weekend estimates based on Friday and Saturday’s estimated takes. Actual numbers for the three-day weekend are reported on Monday afternoon.