Opening day: 'Final Destination' scares up bigger Friday than 'Halloween,' 'Basterds'

What looked like a close weekend at the box office is shaping up to be an easy victory for "The Final Destination," as the fourth movie in Warner Bros.' horror series easily beat the competition Friday.

Helped by the 53% of its theaters that played the movie in 3-D, with higher ticket prices, "The Final Destination" sold a studio-estimated $10.9 million worth of tickets Friday. Based on the performance of previous "Destination" pictures, the movie should earn close to $30 million this weekend, well ahead of expectations based on pre-release polling that had put it closer to $20 million.

Weinstein Co.'s "Halloween II," meanwhile, earned a respectable $7.6 million on Friday. Because hard-core horror movies often do a disproportionate amount of business on their opening day, "Halloween II" is probably headed for a weekend gross just under $20 million.

"Inglourious Basterds" fell 59% from its opening Friday a week ago to $5.9 million. If daily drops for the rest of the weekend are smaller, as is typical, it will probably decline about 50% for the weekend and be in tight competition with "Halloween II" for the No. 2 spot at the box office.

-- Ben Fritz

Photo: Bobby Campo and Shantel VanSanten in "The Final Destination." Credit: Jim Sheldon / New Line Cinema

Comments

[Steven]

It does not surprise me one bit. There was more marketing for Final Destination than Weinstein's and Dimension did for Halloween. It's a shame because Final Destination is just more of the same cheap death thrills which took no imagination to accomplish. On the other hand Rob Zombie took Halloween and reimagined it in his own vision and actully made a good horror movie with an in depth story. Don't get me wrong it is full of gore but there is a story to it unlike Final Destination which ran it's course after the second one. I guess it just goes to show you that marketing is everything, the more you put in the more profit you will see in the end.

[Desiree Walter-Drobiak]

this was the coolest movie ever i loved it i was so scared and im now cautious of every thing i wish i could of seen it in 3-d but it wa sold out... but thats ok cause it was too scary regular version i dont think i would of been able to handle it..... they should make another movie like " final destinaion, back from the dead..." i would definatly go see it.. thanks for creati that movie.. i loved it