‘Monuments Men’ steals $550,000 Thursday night
George Clooney’s World War II art heist film advanced into theaters Thursday night with a studio-estimated $550,000 in ticket sales from showings starting at 7 p.m.
“Monuments Men,” a Sony Pictures and 20th Century Fox co-production that cost $70 million to make, is expected to gross roughly $20 million domestically through Sunday.
The Thursday figure is shy of what Sony’s Oscar-nominated Tom Hanks starrer “Captain Phillips” did in its Thursday debut. That picture, which opened in October, brought in $600,000 from screening starting at 8 p.m. and went on to generate $25.7 million in its first weekend.
PHOTOS: Box office top 10 of 2013 | Biggest flops of 2013
Clooney directed “The Monuments Men” and co-wrote the screenplay with Grant Heslov. The big-name cast includes Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett and John Goodman, and the movie has earned mixed reviews.
Warner Bros.’s new animated feature “The Lego Movie,” which is expected to gross at least $50 million over its opening weekend, laid the building blocks Thursday with $400,000, starting at 10 p.m.
ALSO:
‘The Lego Movie’ likely to build a big audience
TV ratings: ‘Biggest Loser’ finale down from last year
TV ratings: ‘American Idol’ rises; ‘Criminal Minds’ big
Twitter: @rfaughnder
From the Oscars to the Emmys.
Get the Envelope newsletter for exclusive awards season coverage, behind-the-scenes stories from the Envelope podcast and columnist Glenn Whipp’s must-read analysis.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
