Raunchy coming-of-age comedy Superbad topped the weekend North American box office and broke the record for a movie opening in late August, according to studio estimates just released.
Superbad grossed $US31.2 million ($NZ45 million), breaking a 12-year-old record for movies that opened after August 15, said Rory Bruer, president of distribution for Sony Pictures.
The film about two nerdy high school buddies looking for booze and girls unseated last week’s top earner, Rush Hour 3, a buddy film about two hapless cops.
Rush Hour 3 came in second with $US21.8 million for New Line Cinema, down 49 per cent from its opening weekend. It has grossed a total of $US88.2 million since its debut on August 10.
Superbad displaced Mortal Kombat as the top money maker film to debut after August 15, according to Bruer. Mortal Kombat opened on August 18, 1995, and grossed $US23 million in its first weekend.
Superbad, made by Sony unit Columbia Pictures, cost $US20 million to make, Bruer said, adding, “This movie is going to be around a while … This movie will play well into the fall.”
Superbad is the second blockbuster in a row for producer Judd Apatow and its co-writer/star Seth Rogen. Apatow directed this summer’s surprise hit comedy, Knocked Up, while Rogen starred in it.
Coming in third was The Bourne Ultimatum, the latest installment in the espionage-action Jason Bourne series. It took in $US19 million in its third week of release.
Fourth was animated feature The Simpsons Movie at $US6.7 million.
The Invasion, starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, rounded out the top 5 for the weekend. The new arrival took in $US6 million for Warner Brothers.
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Two co-dependent high school guys want to hook up with girls before they graduate and go off to different colleges, but, after a calamitous night just trying to buy alcohol for a school party, overcoming their separation anxiety becomes a greater challenge than getting the girls.
