Even with a 64 percent drop from its victorious debut, the mighty Thor clung to the box-office throne with $9.1 million on Friday, according to early estimates. Compared to other recent Marvel-based movies, the $150 million superhero picture declined more than 2008′s Iron Man, but held up better than that year’s The Incredible Hulk and 2009′s X-Men Origins: Wolverine. The god of thunder also dipped less than this year’s other monster hit, Fast Five, which plummeted 69 percent on its second Friday. However, it’s highly unlikely that Thor will be able to match Fast Five‘s cumulative gross, especially with next week’s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides due to engulf the marketplace. Thor should finish the weekend with about $31 million, pushing its two-week total past $115 million.
However, the film that’s celebrating the most right now is Bridesmaids, which opened in second to a stronger-than-expected $7.8 million on Friday. That puts the R-rated gross-out female comedy on pace for a $22 million weekend. The Universal release, which cost a frugal $32.5 million to produce and garnered excellent reviews, stars (and was co-written by) Kristen Wiig as the romantically frustrated maid of honor for her best friend (Maya Rudolph). The week’s other new release, the 3-D horror action film Priest, took in a mild $5.6 million on Friday. The $60 million movie, starring Paul Bettany as a warrior priest who hunts vampires, should finish the weekend with $14 million.
Among holdovers, Fast Five declined 45 percent to earn $5.9 million and passed 2009′s Fast and Furious to become the street-racing franchise’s biggest hit. Assuming it makes around $18 million this weekend, Fast Five will have collected $167 million after three weeks. In fifth place was the Kate Hudson romantic comedy Something Borrowed, which dropped 52 percent for $2.3 million on Friday.
As for limited releases, the new Will Ferrell dramedy Everything Must Go grossed a mediocre $220,000 from 218 theaters. The drama Hesher, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Natalie Portman, opened to only $36,000 from 40 locations, and the dance drama Go for It! brought in $35,000 from 218 sites for a measly per-theater average of $161. Check back here on Sunday for the complete box office report.
1. Thor — $9.1 mil
2. Bridesmaids — $7.8 mil
3. Fast Five — $5.9 mil
4. Priest — $5.6 mil
5. Something Borrowed — $2.3 mil
