'Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters' Opens #1 Friday But Disappoints For $17M Weekend; 'Parker' And 'Movie 43' Flop

SATURDAY 7 AM,  2ND UPDATE: Friday's business slowed overall as R-rated newcomers populated the box office. 'Tough sledding for the new films this week and next week won't get any easier with the Super Bowl,' one studio exec emailed me. First up: fairytale characters who are heavily armed. Not exactly PC for the serious gun control discussion begun in this nation over recent violence in real life and entertainment. Paramount's Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters co-financed with MGM playing on 3,372 theaters opened to $5.9M Friday and a disappointing $17M  for the weekend. On 2,000 screens for its midnight opening, the action comedy made $500K in midnight grosses, less even than Warner Bros' recent disappointing Gangster Squad. Even though it'll be #1 this weekend, it's still an underperforming R-rated 3D movie with only one semi-star, machinegun-toting Jeremy Renner. Good thing pic only cost $50M. Audiences gave it a 'B' CinemaScore which won't hurt or help is prospects, and was 55% male with 43% under age 25 and 57% over 25. International prospects look good after Russia opened to huge $8.6M. Latin America and Southeast Asia are opening after a strong lead by Brazil and Mexico. These markets represent 30% of the international box office.

#2 is last week's PG-13 suspense thriller topper Mama from Universal in 2,682 theaters. Developed and presented by Guillermo Del Toro and starring Zero Dark Thirty's Best Actress Oscar likely Jessica Chastain as a brunette, pic has a second Friday of now $3.8M (-62%) and a weekend of $11.7M (-58%) for an expected cume through Sunday of $47.5M.

#3 is The Weinstein Company's R-rated Oscar-buzzed Silver Linings Playbook in 2,641 theaters with a $2.3M Friday and $8.3M weekend and $67.8M cume through Sunday. 'Notice that Silver Linings is going to beat Zero Dark Thirty this weekend which is pretty impressive in my book,' a Weinstein exec gushed to me. 'It is the best hold of the top films by far and that is after 11 weeks!'

#4 is another R-rated Oscar-touted pic. Zero Dark Thirty financed by Annapurna Pictures and distributed by Sony Pictures. Playing in 2,929 theaters, it made $2.3M Friday for a $8.0M weekend a cume of $68.1M through Sunday.

#5 is FilmDistrict's barely registering R-rated crime drama Parker directed by Taylor Hackford and starring Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez (who isn't even featured on the main one-sheet and whose film career truly is DOA) in 2,224 theaters. Parker opened to $2.1M Friday and weekend of $6.3M.

#6 is Relativity's little $6M R-rated comedy Movie 43 in 2,023 theaters features 10 directors and a slew of name actors. Movie 43 debuted at $1.8M Friday and weekend of $4.7M. It'll make its money back but that's very little money. Full analysis later.

Here are the Top 10 based on Friday estimates:

For more estimates listed by title, see box office results here...

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

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