By Ryan Parsons | Image property of Paramount, Variety
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Though everybody seemed to love bashing G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra over the weekend, that didn't stop the film from becoming number one at the box office while breaking the $100 million mark as quick as the best of them.
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra Box Office
While I'm curious to see what legs G.I. Joe will have in later weekends, that shouldn't concern Paramount too much, as the actioner earned $100.3 million worldwide over the weekend with $56.2 million coming from the domestic box office. Next weekend could be a dud and the film would remain on track to earn back its budget of $175 million and then some. Can we expect a sequel? No doubt!
If you've been keeping up with the summer releases, one can easily spot Paramount as the big winner for 2009. Not only have they launched or re-booted two franchises with G.I. Joe and Star Trek, but they also continue to kill it with Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.
"This caps off an amazing summer for our marketing and distribution team worldwide," said Paramount co-chair Rob Moore. "And G.I. Joe gives us three of the top six openings of the summer, along with Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and Star Trek."
Though Paramount didn't know how international audiences would except G.I. Joe considering the fact that it flaunts American military, the film did just fine in every market. The film did so well, that is has become the fourth best all-time opening for an August release behind The Bourne Ultimatum, Rush Hour 2 and Signs.
Following G.I. Joe's tracks, Julie and Julia picked up audiences looking to getaway from the typical summer popcorn film. The dramedy starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams had a strong opening with $20.1 million. What did come in below expectations, however, was Rogue Pictures' A Perfect Getaway. To be expected I guess, considering that the horror/thriller genre has been a crapshoot this year.
Thanks to an extremely competitive August, the weekend was up 22% over the same frame last year.
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra 
Add to Heffee!
