Universal's 'Bruno' Starts Strong, Fades

It didn't have the $40-$50 million opening weekend some were anticipating when it got off to a hot $14.4 million start Friday, but Universal’s “Bruno” will meet pre-release tracking estimates, taking in $30.4 million for its opening weekend, according to studio figures.

The R-rated, genitalia-rich Sacha Baron Cohen film took in $8.8 million Saturday at 2,756 theaters, a 39% day-to-day drop studio officials say wasn’t unexpected.

“For R-rated stuff like this, it’s not unusual for Friday to be your biggest day,” said Universal Distribution President Nikki Rocco, noting that “Bruno” drew a first-weekend audience that was 56% male and 46% under-25. “It’s unbelievable how targeted we were with this.”

The opening also bested Cohen's "Borat," which Fox opened to $26.5 million in Nov. 2006 on its way to to grossing $262 million worldwide.

In November 2006, Universal paid Media Rights Capital $42.5 million for the rights to distribute “Bruno” in North America as well as eight foreign territories, including the U.K., Australia, New Zealand and South America.

Over the weekend, “Bruno” -- which costs $55 million to market globally, according to one executive close to the film -- took in another estimated $25 million playing at 1,435 venues within those eight countries.

“This is going to be hugely profitable for the studio,” Rocco insisted. “That global number is just phenomenal.”

After rendering a phenomenal global number of its own last weekend, Fox’s “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” finished second at the domestic box office in its second weekend with a three-day total of $28.5 million from 4,102 theaters, according to studio figures, representing a small 32% decline from its opening weekend.

In fact, on Saturday, with limited fresh options available in theaters for kids, the third “Ice Age,” Fox’s first 3-D effort, led the box office, taking in another $11 million. Overall, it’s grossed $120.6 million in North America since its July 1 release.

Meanwhile, in third place and continuing to roll right along after three weeks in release, Paramount’s “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” finished the weekend with $24.2 million, a 43% decline from week three, putting the Michael Bay robot movie’s overall domestic bounty at $339.2 million.

In fourth place, Universal’s “Public Enemies” took in $14.1 for the weekend, a 44% drop from the week prior, giving the John Dillinger-based movie a two-week cume of $66.5 million.

Rocco said the film, directed by Michael Mann and starring Johnny Depp, is still on pace to meet the key studio goal of grossing $100 million in North America.

In seventh place, behind Disney’s “The Proposal” ($10.5 million weekend gross) and Warner’s “The Hangover” ($9.9), Fox’s “I Love You Beth Cooper” took in $2.1 million Friday and $1.6 million Saturday to finish its first weekend with $5 million, which is what Fox officials said they expected from the niche comedy, budgeted at under $30 million and starring “Heroes’” Hayden Panettiere, going in.

In the department of long legs, “The Proposal” has now grossed $113.8 million after four weeks of North American release, dropping off 18% from week three.

 

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