'SpongeBob Movie' cleans up with $56 million
American Sniper finally met a box office foe it couldn't beat: The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, which soared to an emphatic box office win with an impressive $56 million haul.
The animated 3-D movie, featuring the characters from the long-running Nickelodeon cartoon, knocked American Sniper out of the top spot that Clint Eastwood's drama held for three weeks.
It's been more than a decade since The SpongebobSquarePants Movie made $140 million worldwide in 2004.
The new film picked right back up again with the characters leaving their sea city home of Bikini Bottom to come onto land. SpongeBob scored with audiences seeking family entertainment.
"The delay in films did not matter at all. It's become a generational experience. It's just a great brand," says Paul Dergarabedian analyst for Rentrak. "It's incredibly impressive. This is so beyond what everyone thought. It's nearing Lego Movie territory."
SpongeBob earned a B audience score with CinemaScore and a 68% approval with critics.
The R-rated drama American Sniper held onto second place with $24.2 million, giving it a $282 million total.
Third place went to Andy and Lana Wachowski's Jupiter Ascending, starring Mila Kunis and Channing Tatum, with $19 million in its debut weekend (with $2.2 million coming on IMAX screens).
The sci-fi adventure had been delayed from a July 2014 release to a less-competitive February opener. It was scorned by critics with a 23% approval rating and earned a B-minus audience grade on CinemaScore.
While it opened to respectable numbers, Jeff Bock, box office analyst for Exhibitor Relations, says the movie has to deal with a massive budget reported at $175 million — featuring two of Hollywood's biggest stars and the creators of The Matrix.
"This opening is definitely the bottom-of-the-barrel for a film of this magnitude," says Bock. "Overseas sales will help it. But I don't see anyone giving the Wachowskis another paycheck like this."
Another newcomer sci-fi adventure took the fourth spot — Seventh Son, featuring a re-teaming of Big Lebowski stars Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore. The film took $7.1 million after earning scathing reviews and a 10% approval rating on RottenTomatoes.com. Audiences graded it a B-minus on Cinemascore.
The family-friendly Paddington rounded out the top five with $5.4 million in its fourth week of release for a $57 million total.
Final numbers are due Monday.
The top five will see a significant shake-up next weekend with the release of a highly awaited box office match-up, Fifty Shades of Grey and Kingsman: The Secret Service.