Reigning Champ Real Steel Defends Its Box Office Title

Last weekend, Real Steel managed to beat out George Clooney’s Oscar contender The Ides of March for the top spot at the box office, so it sure wasn’t going to let some ’80s remake take its crown on week number two. The robot boxing flick earned $16.3 million over the weekend, bringing its total gross so far to $51.7 million. The aforementioned ’80s remake, Footloose, came in second with a $16.1 million weekend gross, while new release The Thing (which is a prequel to an ’80s movie, not a remake of John Carpenter’s The Thing itself) earned $8.7 million over the weekend. The Ides of March (weekend gross $7.5 million, total gross $22.1 million) slipped to spot number four, while Dolphin Tale‘s $6.3 million weekend gross kept it in the top five; the inspirational kid’s movie has earned $58.6 million since its release nearly a month ago.

Despite its big-name cast, which includes Jack Black, Owen Wilson and Steve Martin, new wide release The Big Year failed to crack the top five; its $3.3 million haul brought it all the way up to spot number nine (ouch). Out in limited release this weekend were Pedro Almodóvar’s The Skin I Live In ($230,979), Mexican romantic comedy Labios rojos ($72,000), Trespass ($16,350), Texas Killing Fields ($9,600) and America the Beautiful 2: The Thin Commandments ($6,669).

Out in wide release next weekend and hoping to retire Real Steel are Paranormal Activity 3, Paul W.S. Anderson’s The Three Musketeers and The Mighty Macs. Next weekend’s limited releases include Boy Wonder, Le Havre, Margin Call, Martha Marcy May Marlene, Norman, Oranges and Sunshine, Glitch in the Grid and The Catechism Cataclysm, with documentaries Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey, Elevate, Klitschko and Paul Goodman Changed My Life hitting screens in limited release as well.