Box office: 'The Hobbit' breaks December midnight record
Peter Jackson prequel is on pace to pass 'Return of the King's' opening
'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey'
Are you a fan of Box office?
Sign up to get the latest updates instantly.
Peter Jackson's "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" has finally finished making its journey to the big screen, and Middle Earth fans sure missed the director-co-writer's take on the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien.
The film, the first of three based on the slender 1937 tome "The Hobbit," picked up an estimated $13 million in midnight screenings in the U.S. on Thursday night. It's the best December midnight performance of all-time.
Opening on 3,100 theaters (it's adding nearly 1,000 more today), and aided by inflated IMAX, 3D and 48 fps ticket prices, "The Hobbit" is expected to gross somewhere between $80 million to $90 million for the weekend, which should easily pass the previous December champ -- the Will Smith's epic "I Am Legend," which scared up $77.2 million in 2007.
"The Return of the King," the last film in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, earned $8 million at midnight showings and $72 million over opening weekend in December of 2003.
"The Hobbit" takes place decades before the events in "LOTR," and stars Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins, an features "LOTR" vets Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving and Christopher Lee, plus newcomers Richard Armitage and Benedict Cumberbatch.
Trending Now on HitFix Boards
| Topic | Started By | Latest Post | Replies |
|---|---|---|---|
| sandylewis90 |
12 days ago
|
2
|
|
| sandylewis90 |
about 1 month ago
|
1
|
|
| Discuss In Theaters and Coming Soon on HitFix Message Boards » | |||
News From Our Partners
-
What to Watch This Weekend: The Season Finales of Nikita, Doctor Who, The Simpsons, and Family Guy
The Office Series Finale Review: That'll Do, Show. That'll Do.
Syfy Renews Warehouse 13 for a Fifth and Final Season
-
Beyonce Pregnant Again? Sources Confirm 'Epic' Star Is Carrying Baby No. 2
'Hangover 3' Red Band Trailer: Take a Walk Down a NSFW Memory Lane (VIDEO)
Why 'Man of Steel' Didn't Use 'Superman' in the Title
-
Cannes Film Festival: Cannes 2013, Day Three: Cheers for the young stars of The Selfish Giant, jeers for the new films by Hirokazu Kore-eda and Arnaud Desplechin
Hear This: Destroy This Place shows how press releases can get it right
Watch This: With Beavis And Butt-head Do America, Mike Judge skewered the idiocy of cinematic adventures
-
Fiery 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Scene Hurt The Most: Ouch!
How Far Will 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Boldly Go At Box Office?
'Star Trek Into Darkness': The Secret Behind The Mystery Villain
-
Weekly Ketchup: Will Smith to Star in Wild Bunch Remake?
Critics Consensus: Star Trek Into Darkness is Certified Fresh
Red Carpet Roundup: Star Trek Into Darkness Edition
-
The Wrap Up: Remember 'The Office' With the Ultimate Blooper Reel
The Sims 3: Island Paradise's Producer Walkthrough Shows Us the Finer Points of Tropical Life
'Man of Steel' Featurette: Reinventing Superman
-
Kendall Schmidt of Big Time Rush Loses $7,000 Worth of Gifts for Fans [Video]
Kanye West to Drop New Album 'Yeezus' on June 18
Justin Bieber + Selena Gomez Will Sit Together at 2013 Billboard Music Awards
-
The Telefile - The Most Heinous Person on Reality TV This Week
The Telefile - Modern Family: The Best Lines of the Night
The Telefile - Fall TV 2013: What's On When
Comments
Option 1
Comment instantly as a guest GuestOption 2
Option 3
Login or create a HitFix account Login Signupruss
December 15, 2012 at 3:57AM EST Reply to CommentThe film was great. Who cares if it was turned from a short childrens book into a massive 3-part film. The only question that should matter is, was the film good? And how entertaining was it? Did it live up to LOTR... No... but who expected it to? The only complaint I had was the lack of character building with most of the dwarf's. I had no attachment to any of there characters, however, Bilbo Baggins played by Martin Freeman, was oscar worthy(imo) and extremely refreshing as compared to Elijah Wood's, Frodo Baggins. Ian Mckellan was in prime form and Andy Serkis has mastered the character of Gollum. The story was average at best, but will only get better as it continues and develops. This film solid all the way around. I think it just barely missed being a classic. 8.5 out of 10.
Dol Guldur Agreed. Though developing 13 dwarves are really hard. I'm impressed by the fact that Jackson managed to make them so awesome, considering how little we get to know about them in the book. So personally I found the dwarves much more interesting in the film than in the book.
December 15, 2012 at 10:00AM ESTDol Guldur
December 15, 2012 at 9:57AM EST Reply to CommentThough there were some parts that are clearly meant for the younger audience, the Hobbit is amazing. The critics have been blinded by LotR, and can't but compare it to the trilogy. Evn if the Hobbit isn't as magnificent as the best movies in history, doesn't automatically make it a bad movie. Shame on you, critics! Almost anyone who likes fantasy will love the Hobbit. The best fantasy movie in a long, long, long time!