John Carter Gets Beaten by The Lorax

Disney’s John Carter failed to live up to expectations over its opening weekend.

It earned only $30.6 million (its budget, at an estimated $250 million, is quite a bit higher) and was defeated by Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, whose weekend gross of $39.1 million (total gross $121.9 million) was enough to land it in the number one spot for the second weekend running. Coming in third was Project X; its weekend gross of $11.5 million brings its total so far to $40.1 million. New release Silent House earned $7.01 million, slightly edging out number five film Act of Valor (weekend gross $7 million, total gross $56.1 million).

Also out in wide release over the weekend was the Eddie Murphy-starring A Thousand Words; coming as a surprise to absolutely no one, the film underperformed at the box office, earning only $6.3 million and failing to crack the top five.

Out in limited release were Friends with Kids ($2.1 million), Salmon Fishing in the Yemen ($240,000), Footnote ($48,076) and Jiro Dreams of Sushi ($42,000).

Next weekend sees another movie remake hit theaters in wide release, though it’s of an ’80s TV show, not an early 20th century sci-fi series. For co-star/executive producer Jonah Hill’s sake, let’s hope 21 Jump Street has a better reception than John Carter. Out in limited release will be Around June, Casa de mi Padre, Detachment, The FP, Delicacy, The Kid with a Bike, Jeff Who Lives at Home, Natural Selection and Reuniting the Rubins. MM