Kick-Ass 2 couldn’t knock out Elysium in weekend box office
The Sony Pictures distributed Elysium has topped the Aussie box office for the second weekend, taking home $2,156,040 on 294 screens.
Now You See Me, distributed by Eone/Hopscotch Films, made $1,981,939 on 270 screens in its third week this weekend, while the new release of comic book action sequel Kick-Ass 2 drew $1,074,616 across 217 screens on its opening weekend.
The Universal Pictures distributed sequel to 2010’s Kick-Ass movie, based on the Mark Millar comic book series, features 17-year-old high school student Dave Lizeweski aka Kick-Ass, played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and a team of self-made masked crusaders, led by Colonol Stars and Stripes, played by Jim Carrey. The heroes are hunted down by villainous teen Chris D’Amico, played by Christopher Mintz-Plasse, whose goal it is to track down Kick-Ass who murdered his father in the previous film. D’Amico, who calls himself The Motherf***er, recruits trained killers, such as Mother Russia, played by Olga Kurkulina, to do his dirty work.
Carrey previously publicly distanced himself from the level of violence in the film via his Twitter account.
Also released this weekend was What Maise Knew, about a young girl in New York City who is caught in the middle of her parents’ bitter custody battle. The film starring Julianne Moore and Steve Coogan, and distributed by Madman entertainment, played on 30 screens and took home $134,773.
Upstream Color, Shane Carruth’s follow-up to his debut Primer, was released by Palace Films on 15 screens and took home $27,952 in its opening weekend.
Unbeatable, distributed by Indies, made $42,807 on seven screens. Punjabi film Jatt Boys Putt Jatten De was on 12 screens and made $38,462.
| Title (Distributor) | Weekend B/O | Screens | Total B/O |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elysium (Sony) | $2,156,040 | 294 | $6,940,102 |
| Now You See Me (Eone /hopscotch) | $1,981,939 | 270 | $10,806,192 |
| Kick-ass 2 (Universal) | $1,074,619 | 217 | $1,091,669 |
| The Wolverine (Fox) | $383,993 | 232 | $15,249,216 |
| Pain & Gain (Paramount) | $269,340 | 206 | $3,322,717 |
| Despicable Me 2 (Universal) | $166,372 | 168 | $35,349,190 |
| The Heat (Fox) | $147,512 | 127 | $14,862,390 |
| What Maisie Knew (Madman) | $134,773 | 36 | $157,621 |
| Frances Ha (Paramount) | $84,381 | 18 | $256,791 |
| Monsters University (Disney) | $67,356 | 75 | $24,067,437 |
| The World's End (Universal) | $63,899 | 56 | $2,433,616 |
| The Way Way Back (Studiocanal) | $57,591 | 54 | $1,318,731 |
| Chennai Express (Mindblowing Films) | $57,478 | 21 | $759,707 |
| Unbeatable (Indies) | $42,807 | 7 | $42,807 |
| Madras Cafe (Indies) | $42,423 | 10 | $42,423 |
| Before Midnight (Eone /hopscotch) | $38,546 | 40 | $1,140,770 |
| Jatt Boys Putt Jattan De (Indies) | $38,462 | 12 | $38,462 |
| Epic (Fox) | $32,530 | 74 | $8,303,326 |
| Upstream Color (Palace) | $27,952 | 15 | $33,937 |
| National Theatre Live: The Audience (Sharmill) | $15,540 | 8 | $915,701 |
