Box Office: 'Resident Evil 5' Easily Tops 'Finding Nemo 3D' Friday And Weekend

FRIDAY PM, SATURDAY AM, 3RD UPDATE: It's looking like a revived box office at the start of the domestic weekend. The respectable grosses for both opening pics are a relief for Hollywood after weeks of lackluster threatrical sales and the lowest-grossing weekend in at least four years. Total moviegoing this weekend will $85M, but that's still -10% from last year when The Lion King in 3D made $30.1M. In contrast, Disney/Pixar's 3D version of its 2003 blockbuster Finding Nemo (2,904 theaters) looks like $5M Friday and at least $18.3M for the weekend. But it could go higher given the lack of fresh kid movies in the multiplex. (Full analysis later.)

Sony/Screen Gems' 3D  Resident Evil: Retribution (3,012 theaters) is the 5th installment in the sexy sci-fi/horror franchise and an easy #1 against the clownfish. It opened with $8.8M Friday helped by its $665K from midnight screenings. But it should top out at $23M for the weekend, which is less than the franchise's 4th installment. No matter because it makes its real moolah overseas. 'From early returns from international including Japan, this could be the biggest one yet,' a Sony exec tells me Friday night.

Also of note, the same distribution company that released the hit political documentary 2016: Obama's America on Friday opened Last Ounce of Courage. Now both pics were in the Top Ten Friday. The new low-budget pic aimed at 'freedom-loving faith-based' audiences normally receives a slow rollout. Instead, it's debuting in 1,407 theaters with a bigger marketing push than usual (including TV buys) for nearly $700K. That adds up to a weekend looking at $2.1M. Bold move by Rocky Mountain Pictures is paying off.

Finally, fresh from the Venice and Toronto International Film Festival circuit, The Weinstein Company's much lauded The Master is starting its platform run and Oscar campaign. Director Paul Thomas Anderson and talents Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman got off to a great start in limited release in 5 theaters grossing $242,127. That includes $38,846 at Lincoln Square, $29,162 at Village East, and $21,798 at the Angelika. The cume may be as much as $678K by end of Sunday.

Here's the Top Ten based on Friday estimates:

1. Resident Evil 5 (Screen Gems/Sony) NEW [3,012 Runs]
Friday $8.4M, Weekend $23.0M

2. Finding Nemo (Pixar/Disney) NEW [2,904 Runs]
Friday $5.0M, Weekend $18.3M

3. The Possession (Lionsgate) Week 3 [2,860 Runs]
Friday $1.8M, Weekend $5.9M, Cume $41.3M

4. Lawless (Weinstein) Week 3 [3,063 Runs]
Friday $1.3M, Weekend $4.4M, Cume $30.3M

5. The Words (CBS Films) Week 2  [2,801 Runs]
Friday $926K (-41%), Weekend $2.8M, Cume $9.1M

6. The Expendables 2 (Millenium/Lionsgate) Week 5 [2,896 Runs]
Friday $883K, Weekend $3.2M, Cume $80.5M

7. The Bourne Legacy (Universal) Week 6 [2,170 Runs]
Friday $847K, Weekend $3.0M, Cume $107.9M

8. The Campaign (Warner Bros) Week 6 [2,002 Runs]
Friday $744K, Weekend $2.4M, Cume $82.9M

9. 2016 Obama's America (Rocky Mt) Week 10 [1,876 Runs]
Friday $701K, Weekend $2.2M, Cume $30.3M

10. Last Ounce Of Coverage (Rocky Mt) NEW [1,407 Runs]
Friday $692K, Weekend $2.1M

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