Scoring one of the best openings for an original R-rated comedy, the raunchy and bong-smoking teddy bear ruled the weekend against the bunch of male strippers (also R-rated) to make a rare one-two finish for R-rated flicks. “Ted” scored a very impressive estimated gross of $ 54.1 million at the U.S. Box Office from 3,239 locations; besting the first Hangover movie’s $44.98 million launch back in 2009 for the R-rated comedy record. Among all the R-rated movies, it tanks eight all-time.
The $50 million Universal Picture comedy’s success is credited to its broad-appealing and original concept comedy; turning it into a profitable business. It has Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy), Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis starring in it, forming a three-quad that helps to attract different audiences. “Ted” represents a successful transition into the silver screen for MacFarlane, who is more popular in TV series like Family Guy. Also helping its way is the release date bump from its original July 13 date. The move has avoided the comedy from been sandwiched by The Amazing Spider-Man and The Dark Knight Rises’ possible slaughter.
According to Universal's exit polling, the audience skewed male (56 percent) and younger (52 percent were 30 years of age and under). They awarded the movie a very good "A-" CinemaScore, which implies that strong word-of-mouth. “Ted” marks Wahlberg’s second best opening in his career.
Another R-rated movie, the $ 7 million budget drama by Steven Soderbergh, “Magic Mike” had to settle for silver medal with an equally stunning $39.2 million debut. This marks star Channing Tatum third movie of 2012 to open above $36 million on the first weekend. Unfortunately, its durability may be tested since “Magic Mike” opened to a huge $20 million on first day before scored some drops on Saturday and Sunday. Regardless of whether it will make it into the $100 million final gross, Warner Bros. deserved the result due to the aggressive campaigns over the last few weeks. According to exit polling, “Magic Mike” skewed female (73 percent) and 57 percent under the age of 35. It scores an underwhelming "B" CinemaScore.
Another opener which scored relatively well was Tyler Perry’s latest “Madea’s Witness Protection”, which should scored $26.3 million over the weekend. Despite recent duds by the famous Afro-American filmmaker, evidently his latest offering remained strongly accepted. Exit polling skewed towards the African American (70 percent), older women (69 percent female) and over the age of 25 (69 percent), and they awarded the movie an "A-" CinemaScore.
The rest of the box office chart looks something like this:
| Rank | Title | Weekend Gross ($) | Change (%) | Total Gross ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TED | 54,100,000 | NEW | 54,100,000 |
| 2 | MAGIC MIKE | 39,155,000 | NEW | 39,155,000 |
| 3 | BRAVE | 34,011,000 | -48.7 | 131,685,000 |
| 4 | TYLER PERRY'S MADEA'S WITNESS PROTECTION | 26,350,000 | NEW | 26,350,000 |
| 5 | MADAGASCAR 3: EUROPE'S MOST WANTED | 11,815,000 | -40.1 | 180,012,000 |
| 6 | ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER | 6,000,000 | -63.2 | 29,034,000 |
| 7 | PROMETHEUS | 4,925,000 | -50.3 | 118,262,000 |
| 8 | MOONRISE KINGDOM | 4,873,000 | +43.6 | 18,406,000 |
| 9 | SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN | 4,405,000 | -45.5 | 145,591,000 |
| 10 | PEOPLE LIKE US | 4,306,000 | NEW | 4,306,000 |
| 11 | MARVEL'S THE AVENGERS | 4,215,000 | -41.3 | 606,298,000 |
| 12 | MEN IN BLACK III | 2,900,000 | -49.4 | 169,640,000 |