Family films are always a big part of the Thanksgiving box office equation, but this year multiplexes will be especially stuffed with the genre.
Three new PG-rated movies, all with good reviews, hit theaters in U.S. and Canada Wednesday, Disney's "The Muppets," Paramount'/GK's Martin Scorsese film "Hugo" and Sony/Aardman's "Arthur Christmas."
These movies join Warner's "Happy Feet Two," which was released last weekend. DreamWorks Animation's "Puss in Boots," which premiered in late October, will also have a few remaining play dates.
The five-day Thanksgiving holiday period is typically the biggest of the year at the box office. But there are a lot of newly released family movies playing at the same time this year, and the competition is thick.
Also read: Review: ‘The Muppets’ Return in True Anarchic, Absurd Style
Consider that over Thanksgiving weekend in 2010, the only competition for Disney's "Tangled" was week No. 2 of Warner's "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1" and week No. 4 of DreamWorks' Animation's "Megamind."
"Tangled" enjoyed a $68.7 million five-day haul, on its way to a $590.7 million total box office bounty. But it will take an exceptional over-performance for any of this week's films to come even close to that mark.
"We don't expect to be No. 1," admitted an executive for one of the weekend's competing studios. He told TheWrap his company's strategic objective is to get its movie open for an extended holiday play.
He cited films like 2004's "The Polar Express" and 2009's "A Christmas Carol," which endured disappointing openings but performed very well over ensuing holiday weekends.
"I remember when 'Polar Express' opened a few years ago, and there was a rush to judgment in the press based on its opening, which was viewed as mediocre to middling at best," the executive said. "Go back and look at that multiple and performance. A lot of press had to eat crow at the end of that run."
Also read: Review: Witty, Moving ‘Arthur Christmas’ Should Be an Annual Tradition
Beyond the surfeit of kiddie fare, there will be some adult choices this holiday weekend. Dramas entering limited release include the Weinstein Company's "My Week With Marylin," which will start out in 12 markets Wednesday, expanding to 57 friday. Weinstein's "The Artist" will debut in four arthouse locations.
Sony Classics' David Cronenberg thriller "A Dangerous Method" will also start out in four theaters, and Millennium Entertainment crime drama "Rampart" will debut in limited release, too.
And for those who didn't sleep in line to see it last weekend, there's also Summit Entertainment's "Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1," which debuted to $138.1 million.
But again, PG-rated films will rule the box office this time around.
As of late-day Tuesday, Disney's "Muppets" had a conspicuously good 100 percent score on reviews aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes, with all 53 critics tallied saying nice things.
