Saturday update:
After a godlike performance from "Fast Five" last weekend, the box office is poised to return to its mortal underpinnings, with Marvel superhero movie "Thor" not on pace to hit its $70 million-plus weekend projections.
The Paramount-distributed film grossed $25.7 million Friday, according to studio data, charging premium 3D rates at most of its 3,955 North American locations.
Overall, the domestic market was down 11 percent year to year Friday, with two other small films meeting mid-teen weekend forecasts.
Sony's "Jumping the Broom" grossed an estimated $4.2 million Friday, while Warner's "Something Borrowed" took in $4.8 million.
Universal's "Fast Five" declined nearly 70 percent from its first Friday, grossing an estimated $10.5 million Friday.
Meanwhile, among limited releases, curiousity about Mel Gibson's latest film, Summit's Jodie Foster-directed "The Beaver," isn't driving folks to the art house.
Debuting at 22 locations Friday, the film took in just $30,000 and is on pace to average only around $5,000 per engagement for the weekend.
Thursday preview:
After a long, hard winter, during which the box-office mercury plunged more than 20 percent, it's suddenly summer at the multiplex ... and things are finally heating up.
This weekend, Marvel's Norse-god-themed comicbook film "Thor" will arrive in more than 3,900 theaters, and will look to sustain momentum that slowly emerged several weeks ago, when Fox released its animated hit "Rio," then spiked big when Universal's "Fast Five" premiered to an outsized $86.2 million.
"I feel good about how the Universal movie did last week. We were going along under water for so long as an industry," said Don Harris, general manager of distribution for Paramount, which will release "Thor" for Marvel.
"Thor" will highlight an eclectic mix of new releases this weekend, with Warner romantic comedy "Something Borrowed" and Sony African-American-targeted comedy (also romantic) "Jumping the Broom" also opening wide, and Summit's Mel Gibson/Jodie Foster film "The Beaver" set for limited release.
Can “Thor” keep the momentum alive at the domestic box office?
Year to year, the box office is still down about 16 percent, and that figure might not improve much, if any, this weekend, even if the 3D "Thor" meets pre-release estimates in the $70 million-plus range. (Paramount's guidance is a bit more conservative, hovering below $60 million.)
Consider that last year, on this same weekend, Marvel and distributor Paramount also teamed on "Iron Man 2," which debuted to $128.1 million. For the 2011 box office, the tough comparisons continue.
As a property, Harris said, "Thor" doesn't arrive with the kind of built-in awareness of other Marvel properties, like, say "Iron Man" or "Spider-Man."
Still, any gross for "Thor" that comes in reasonably close to pre-release expectations has to be considered a win for Paramount and Marvel, considering that only "Fast Five" has premiered to more than $40 million this year.
According to a studio representative, the movie has $150 million production cost.
