Sony’s ‘Spider-Man’ Tops Box Office With $65 Million in Sales

“The Amazing Spider-Man,” Sony Corp. (6758)’s reboot of the super-hero film franchise, led the U.S. and Canadian box office in its first weekend with $65 million in ticket sales, building on a midweek debut.

“Spider-Man,” released on July 3 ahead of the U.S. Fourth of July holiday, has taken in $140 million over six days, researcher Hollywood.com Box-Office said yesterday in an e- mailed statement. The drug-war drama “Savages” opened fourth with $16.2 million for Comcast Corp. (CMCSA)’s Universal Pictures.

“The Amazing Spider-Man” revives a franchise that took in $2.55 billion in worldwide ticket sales from three pictures, according to researcher Box Office Mojo. Sony increased its estimate for the six-day span by $15 million to a range of $135 million to $140 million after the movie brought in between $60 million and $65 million in its first two days.

“This is a solid performance especially for a reboot coming less than five years after ‘Spider-Man 3,’ and the reviews really made the difference,” said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Hollywood.com Box-Office in a telephone interview. “It was the perfect movie for the Fourth of July week.”

“The Amazing Spider-Man” was expected to generate $60 million in sales over the weekend, the estimate of researcher BoxOffice.com.

‘Ted’

This installment boasts a new cast, with U.K.-raised Andrew Garfield replacing Tobey Maguire in the title role. Garfield played Facebook Inc. (FB) co-founder Eduardo Saverin in “The Social Network” and is onstage as Biff Loman in “Death of a Salesman” on Broadway.

Garfield portrays the orphaned Peter Parker, nursing a crush on high-school classmate Gwen Stacy while trying to unravel the mystery behind his parents’ disappearance. A visit to a high-tech research laboratory results in a spider bite that endows him with extraordinary powers.

Emma Stone is featured as Gwen. Martin Sheen and Sally Field co-star as Peter’s Uncle Ben and Aunt May.

The film cost about $215 million to produce, according to researcher Internet Movie Database. The movie, released a week ago in some markets outside the U.S., has made $341.2 million worldwide, according to Hollywood.com Box-Office.

Among returning movies, the R-rated comedy “Ted,” featuring a foul-mouthed teddy bear, fell to second place from first with $32.6 million in receipts. The movie, starring Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis, has taken in $120.2 million to date for Universal.

‘Savages’

Pixar’s “Brave,” the 13th film from the Walt Disney Co (DIS).- owned studio, remained in third place with sales of $20.2 million. The movie has generated $175 million in three weeks.

“Savages,” the fourth-place film, was directed by Oliver Stone. The drama focuses on two marijuana growers, Ben and Chon, who come into conflict with a Mexican drug cartel when their shared girlfriend, played by Blake Lively, is kidnapped. John Travolta, Aaron Johnson and Taylor Kitsch co-star.

“Magic Mike,” about the world of male strippers and featuring Channing Tatum in the title role, dropped three spots to fifth in its second weekend, generating $15.6 million in sales for Time Warner Inc. (TWX)’s Warner Bros.

“Katy Perry: Part of Me,” from Viacom Inc. (VIAB)’s Paramount Pictures, made its debut in eighth place with $7.2 million in receipts. The film chronicles the pop star’s life on and off stage.

Weekend revenue for the top 12 films rose 28 percent to $187.1 million from the year-ago period, Hollywood.com said. Domestic film sales this year have risen 8 percent to $5.79 billion, with attendance up 11 percent.

The amounts below are based on actual ticket sales for July 6 and July 7 and estimates for yesterday.

                       Rev.            Avg./   Pct.   Total
Movie                 (mln)  Theaters  Theater Chg.   (mln)  Wks
===============================================================
1 AMAZING SPIDER-MAN   $65.0   4,318  $15,053   --   $140.0   1
2 TED                   32.6   3,256   10,010   -40   120.2   2
3 BRAVE                 20.2   3,891    5,182   -41   174.5   3
4 SAVAGES               16.2   2,628    6,150   --     16.2   1
5 MAGIC MIKE            15.6   3,120    5,003   -60    72.8   2
6 TYLER PERRY’S MADEA’S 10.2   2,161    4,720   -60    45.8   2
7 MADAGASCAR 3           7.7   2,861    2,691   -35   196.0   5
8 KATY PERRY: PART OF ME 7.2   2,730    2,619   --     10.3   1
9 MOONRISE KINGDOM       4.6     884    5,251    -6    26.8   7
10 TO ROME WITH LOVE     3.5     806    4,345   367     5.3   3
11 PEOPLE LIKE US        2.3   2,055    1,098   -47     9.3   2
12 THE AVENGERS          2.2   1,125    1,929   -51   611.1  10


Top 12 Films Grosses:

  This Week     Year Ago      Pct.
     (mln)         (mln)       Chg.
===================================
    $187.1        $145.7       +28%


Year-to-date Revenue:

     2012          2011
      YTD           YTD        Pct.
     (mln)         (mln)       Chg.
===================================
    $5,787.7      $5,355.2      +8%


Year-to-date Attendance:       +11%

To contact the reporter on this story: Kelly Blessing in New York at kblessing@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Anthony Palazzo in Los Angeles at apalazzo@bloomberg.net

Enlarge image

Sony’s ‘Spider-Man’ Tops Box Office With $65 Million Take

Jaimie Trueblood/Columbia Pictures Industries via Bloomberg

Andrew Garfield stars as Peter Parker and Spider-Man.

Andrew Garfield stars as Peter Parker and Spider-Man. Photographer: Jaimie Trueblood/Columbia Pictures Industries via Bloomberg