Last ‘Hobbit’ movie has lasting power over holiday competition

Written by O’Boyd

Despite a bevy of films released on Christmas Day, “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” is proving to be more than a one-hit wonder.

The film collected $41.4 million through the long holiday weekend and now stands at $168.5 million domestically. It beat out “Unbroken,” which debuted at No. 2 with 31.7 million. It just did beat out Disney’s “Into The Woods,” which had $31 million.

Rounding out the top five were “Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb,” which held its ground in its second week of release with 20.6 million, and “Annie,” which made $16.6 million despite poor reviews from critics.

“The Interview,” the Seth Rogen/James Franco film that was pulled by Sony Pictures a little more than a week before its Christmas Day release after cyber attacks and threats by North Korea, took in $1.8 million in limited release. It made $1 million on Christmas Day for a total of $2.8 million overall.

“The Interview” was also released on various on-demand sites like YouTube, GooglePlay and others for both purchase and rental. Variety reports the film has made over $15 million through Saturday.

“American Sniper” and “Selma” also fared well in limited release. “Sniper” made $610,000 on just four screens. “Selma” was seen on 19 screens and made $912,000.

“Sniper” opens nationwide on Jan. 16 while “Selma” does the same on Jan. 9.

Title                                                               Weekend        Total box office

1. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies       $41.4 millon      $168.5 million
2. Unbroken                                                         $31.7 million      $47.3 million
3. Into the Woods                                               $31 million          $46.1 million
4. Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb      $20.6 million      $55.3 million
5. Annie                                                               $16.6 million      $45.8 million
6. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1       $10 million         $306.7 million
7. The Gambler                                                  $9.3 million         $14.3 million
8. The Imitation Game                                       $7.9 million         $14.6 million
9. Exodus: Gods and Kings                              $6.8 million         $52.5 million
10. Wild                                                             $5.4 million         $16.4 million