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SUNDAY AM: North American numbers show that, thanks to big weekend bounces in 3,965 theaters, Sony Pictures’ No. 1 Hancock scored its first 3-day weekend with $66 mil and gave star Will Smith his biggest Independent Day holiday opening ever with a 5 1/2-day cume of $107.3 mil. The PG-13 pic went up 9% from Thursday to Friday for $18.8M, and up 39% from Friday to Saturday for $26.1M. The dark comedy about an unhappy superhero mustered the momentum despite receiving only 33% positive reviews from top critics and only so-so buzz. But Will Smith has traditionally owned the July 4th long weekend based on the past performance of his movies which opened on that holiday like Independence Day, Men In Black, Men In Black 2, and Wild Wild West. All went on to earn $442+M in worldwide gross. Hancock is the 5th film he has opened #1 during the Fourh of July holiday and his 8th #1 opening in a row and his 8th film to gross over $100M in a row since July 2002. Will has 12 #1 films throughout his career and has opened 9 films to opening weekend grosses higher than $40M. Because of that impressive track record from the one actor whom Hollywood considers able to reliably open a movie these days., Sony feels Hancock‘s franchise hopes are alive because “there is a huge disconnect between audiences and critics when you have big numbers added to the world’s most bankable movie star.” Demographics were fairly balanced with 52%/48% of the audience male/female, and 52%/48% under age 25 /over age 25.

Overseas, Hancock did an additional $78.3M and was #1 in 47 of 50 territories for a worldwide total to date of $185 million. (And it has yet to open in France, Russia, Belgium, Holland, Mexico, Spain, Sweden, Italy and Japan.)

In second place, Disney/Pixar’s Wall-E keeps piling up the dough from 3,992 venues for a $33.4M weekend and new cume of $128.1M. Meanwhile, Picturehouse made a huge mistake by only platforming Kit Kittredge: An American Girl on July 2oth, a week before Wall-E opened, and then waiting for a July 2nd wider release after the Disney/Pixar toon was already a blockbuster. The studio foolishly thought its well-reviewed G-rated pic could counter-program Hancock with kid favorite Abigail Breslin, and also Will Smith’s young daughter Willow. (Prompting Smith to tell her, “Daddy loves you sweetie, but I gots to stomp you at the box office.”). As an insider explained, “They had the right date all along: the momentum was there, the reviews were there, and Wall-E was not! But then Picturehouse put Kit Kittredge down in the middle of freeway. Suicide.” Even with a big kid matinee bump, the pic was only #8 from 1,843 runs for a Friday-Saturday-Sunday of just $3.6M and cume of $6.1M.

At No. 3, Universal’s Wanted, the Angelina Jolie-James McAvoy actioner, made $20.6M for the 3-day weekend in 3,185 theaters for a new cume of $90.7M. The 4th slot went to Warner Bros’ Get Smart with a $11.1M weekend from 3,574 plays and $98.1M cume. And No. 5 was DreamWorks Animation/Paramount’s Kung Fu Panda which squeezed a $7.5M FSS from 3,347 venues and new cume of $193.3M. At #6, Marvel/Universal’s The Incredible Hulk ended the weekend with $4.9M in 3,043 dates and a new cume of $124.9M. In 7th place, Paramount’s Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull earned a $3.9M FSS in 2,192 theaters and cume of $306.5M. At #9, HBO Films/New Line/Warner Bros’ Sex And The City took in $2.3M FSS in 1,275 dates and a new cume $143.8M. And rounding out the Top 10, Sony’s You Don’t Mess With The Zohan playing in 1,731 venues made $2M FSS and cume $94.7M.

Overall, the holiday weekend total of $155M was down 8% from last year’s $170M.

SATURDAY AM: #1 Sony Pictures’ Hancock received the bounce it needed, up 9% from Thursday, to make $18.8 million on Fourth of July Friday from 3,965 theaters. That gives the PG-13 dramedy $60.1M from its first 3 1/2 days. The studio expects a 3-day weekend in the low $60sM to put Hancock ”comfortably over 100″ for the 5 days – somewhere between $102M-$105M. 

Other films: #2 Disney/Pixar’s Wall-E made $9.1M Friday (-61% from its opening day) from 3,992 venues. It should make $38M for FSS and a cume of  $133M. #3 Universal’s Wanted $5.3M (-72% from its opening) Friday in 3,185 runs, $22M FSS, cume $92M. #4 Warner Bros’ Get Smart $3M Friday from 3,574 plays, $12M FSS, cume $98M. #5 DreamWorks Animation/Paramount’s Kung Fu Panda $2M Friday in 3,347 theaters, $8M FSS, cume $194M.

#6 Marvel/Universal’s The Incredible Hulk $1.2M Friday from 3,043 venues, $5M FSS, cume $125M. #7 Paramount’s Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull $1.1M Friday in 2,192 plays, $3.7M FSS, cume $307M.  #8 Picturehouse’s Kit Kittredge: An American Girl made $857K on Fourth Of July in 1,843 theaters, $3.3M FSS, cume $6M. #9 HBO Films/New Line/Warner Bros’ Sex And The City $630M Friday from 1,275 theaters, $2.4M FSS, cume $145M. #10 Sony’s You Don’t Mess With The Zohan, $475M Friday from 1,731 venues, $1.9M FSS, cume $94.7M.

FRIDAY AM: Sony Pictures’ Hancock keeps adding to its domestic box office dough. It made $17.1 million from 3,965 theaters for Thursday, down only 2% from its Wednesday opening., bringing its 2 1/2 day total (including Tuesday’s evening shows) to $41.3M.

THURSDAY AM: Sony Pictures now has a hefty $24.2 million total domestic gross in 1 1/2 days for its dramedy Hancock starring Will Smith and directed by Peter Berg: $6.8M Tuesday (from two evening shows starting at 7 PM at 3,680 North American theaters) and $17.3M Wednesday (from its full run in 3,965 venues for its official opening). The studio still has its sights set on the Will Smith dramedy earning more than $100M but $115M seems out of reach. Although the poorly reviewed film is doing big business overseas, there’s some doubt now whether this can still be Sony’s next franchise (or Will Smith’s … remember Warner Bros’ Wild Wild West?)

Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.

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