By Scott Bowles, USA TODAY
Will Smith, studio executives like to say, could film himself painting a fence and it would open at No. 1.
So it came as little surprise that The Pursuit of Happyness was the top film of the weekend — and Smith's 10th movie to open above $20 million.
BOX OFFICE: Top 10 weekend films
The rags-to-riches story raked in $27 million, according to estimates from Nielsen EDI. (Final figures are due today.)
Many analysts expected that the film's themes of poverty and homelessness would relegate Happyness to about $17 million and third place at best. But executives at Sony Pictures, which released Happyness, say those projections underestimated Smith's clout.
"When you open a movie with Will Smith, you're really not taking much of a chance," says Rory Bruer, distribution chief for Sony. "We knew it wasn't a typical movie, but he's not your typical actor."
Indeed, Smith's 10 debuts of $20 million or more is eclipsed only by Tom Cruise, who has opened 11 movies above that mark. And Smith's films make an average of $114 million, according to the Box Office Mojo website.
"He's got a lot of facets as an actor, but it's more than that," Bruer says. "People genuinely like him. They see him as someone who could be their neighbor or best friend. That translates at the box office beyond the movie itself."
The film did particularly well among older adults; about 57% of the audience was 25 and older, while 59% was female, according to Sony's exit surveys.
The fantasy film Eragon was a strong second, taking in $23.5 million despite savage reviews. Only 14% of the nation's critics recommended the movie, according to the survey website Rotten Tomatoes.
"The reviews weren't kind, but kids don't read reviews," says Bruce Snyder of 20th Century Fox, which released Eragon. "Given this was the weekend before Christmas, when everyone is so busy with other things, we're really pleased."
Other notables:
•Charlotte's Web did just $12 million, $10 million below expectations, though family movies often play well through the holidays.
•Mel Gibson's Apocalypto dropped 49% from its debut, falling to sixth place with $7.7 million.
•Dreamgirls enjoyed a strong debut in New York and Los Angeles, raking in $360,000 on three screens. It expands to about 800 screens on Christmas Day.
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