Dogs are apparently box office gold, in these trying financial times, audiences are seeking out crappy movies starring animals. ‘Beverly Hills Chihuahua’ moved $17.5 million this weekend, beating out the Ridley Scott Directed ‘Body of Lies.’
The other big news item from this weekend is the Keira Knightley costumer ‘The Duchess’ moving to 9th place after an expansion to more theaters.
Other openers, ‘City of Ember’ opened and met its low expectations, Universal’s ‘The Express,’ a biopic about the first African-American college football player to win the Heisman Trophy, grossed $4.7 million putting it in 6th place.
The big disappointment was ‘Body of Lies,’ which was written by ‘Departed’ scribe Bill Monahan, and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe. The R rated pic tells teh story of a CIA agent on the ground in the Middle East, and features many scenes of violence and torture. It’s clear to see with the bleak times, why audiences sought lighter fair.
Here are the complete top 10 results:
1. Beverly Hills Chihuahua – $17.5M
2. Quarantine (2008) – $14.2M
3. Body of Lies – $13.1M
4. Eagle Eye – $11M
5. Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist -$6.5M
6. The Express – $4.73M
7. Nights in Rodanthe – $4.61M
8. Appaloosa – $3.34M
9. The Duchess – $3.32M
10. City of Ember – $3.2M