Four Christmases Kicks Off the Holiday Season On Top

by Andrew Gnerre | Published December 1, 2008

This Thanksgiving there was plenty to go around—both at the dinner table and the box office. The big winner of the weekend was the modestly reviewed Four Christmases, directed by Seth Gordon (King of Kong) and starring Reese Witherspoon, Vince Vaughn, Robert Duvall and Jon Voight. The season’s first batch of holiday hijinx netted an estimated $31.7 million in Friday to Sunday grosses with an even more impressive five-day total of $46.7 million. Smash hit Twilight slipped to second place with a $26.4 million Friday to Sunday gross and a $39.5 million five-day total—a far cry from its $69.6 million opening weekend.

The most impressive numbers, however, may belong to an animated dog and a gay politician. Bolt, Disney’s animated flick featuring the voices of John Travolta and Miley Cyrus, went back for second helpings with a vengeance, netting $26.6 million, a one percent increase over its opening weekend, and a $36 million five-day cumulative gross, putting it in third for the long weekend. Milk, Gus Van Sant’s latest starring Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Emile Hirsch and Diego Luna, pulled in a humble $1.8 million on 36 screens, marking a not-so-humble per theater average of $51,835.

With next week’s releases consisting of four limited releases and a superhero movie that no one seems to care about (Punisher: War Zone), next week is shaping up to be a repeat at the box office, unless Milk‘s strong showing can translate to its wider release this Friday. As always, check back on next week’s Top of the Box Office report to find out.