NEW YORK — The more adult-oriented fall moviegoing season got off to a strong start over the weekend, as the Hugh Jackman kidnapping drama Prisoners opened with a box office-leading $21.4 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The thriller, which also stars Jake Gyllenhaal, is among the first fall films with Oscar aspirations to open in theatres. It was a strong debut for a serious, R-rated drama that cost about $46 million to make.
Following the robust business for Lee Daniels’ The Butler (now up to $106.5 million in six weeks), the large audiences turning out for adult fare bodes well for Hollywood’s coming awards season.
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Directed by Quebec’s Denis Villeneuve, the nearly 2 1/2 hour-long Prisoners is about the working-class families of two young girls who are abducted. In a story heavy with allegory, Jackman plays a father willing to cross moral lines for justice. Gyllenhaal stars as the small-town police detective trying to navigate the case.
READ MORE: ‘Prisoners’ stars talk about getting into character for dark thriller
In limited release, two other adult-oriented films opened well. Ron Howard’s Formula One tale Rush opened in five theatres with a $40,000 per-screen average. And the romantic comedy Enough Said, which co-stars James Gandolfini in one of his final performances, opened in four theatres with a per-screen average of $60,000. Both films expand next week.
Last week’s top film, Insidious: Chapter 2, slid to second place. The horror film made $14.5 million in its second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. It has made $60.9 million in two weeks domestically.
The Chris Brown dance film Battle of the Year opened poorly, taking in only $5 million.
The 3-D conversion of The Wizard of Oz made $3 million, opening on 318 IMAX screens.
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