‘Breaking Dawn’ Disappoints at the Box Office
This weekend’s premiere of “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1” has left Summit Entertainment disappointed earning $139.5 million.
The fourth installment to the “Twilight” franchise has become the fifth best-earning opening weekend debut in Hollywood history, per Sunday estimates, but fell short of prior “Twilight” films’ earnings on opening weekends.
“New Moon,” the second film in the franchise, earned $142.8 million in 2009 during its opening weekend.
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According to prerelease audience surveys, “Breaking Dawn” was forecasted to earn an opening of as much as $150 million.
Richie Fay, president of Summit’s domestic distribution, told the L.A. Times that he thinks “Breaking Dawn” may have opened to a smaller figure than “New Moon” because “Twilight” followers have matured with age.
“As we know, as folks get older, the impulse to get out and be the first one to see the movie isn’t there,” said Fay. Worldwide, Fay expects the film to earn around $700 million.
The movie grossed more box office earnings than any other film in theaters now; beating new releases “Happy Feet Two” and “The Descendants.”
The pivotal “Twilight” movie includes the wedding scene where characters Edward and Bella are finally united in matrimony after many obstacles kept them apart. Reprising the roles respectively, Kristen Steward and Rob Pattinson return to the screen, along with Taylor Lautner who portrays Jacob.
The wedding scene is the most anticipated event in the film and details about the footage have created a media firestorm this week.
Filming the nuptials, Stewart said, “I really wanted to remember an experience that felt right for the moment. I don’t know, it felt very natural. It felt like, kind of a real ceremony to me.”
Also speaking about the wedding scene, Pattinson described Stewart as she walked down the aisle for their on-screen wedding.
“I’d seen her in the wedding dress, but pretty much everyone in the cast hadn’t seen her,” said the 25-year-old actor while appearing on the “Today” show.
“So when she’s walking down the aisle and everyone turns around to her, it’s genuine curiosity because there was so much secrecy about it.”
