Weekend Box Office: Green Lantern Opens Soft, Will Lose Money

The trick with any studio launch of a $200-million would-be franchise--especially one freighted by $100 million in marketing--is to open well enough to make your money back, and then some. At an estimated $52.7 million, Green Lantern opened soft: Anthony D'Alessandro explains why. The box-office strength of Warner Bros. $200-million tentpole Green Lantern dimmed from green to yellow as the DC comic book adaptation finally beamed in $52.7 million--about 9% below the studio’s conservative projection. The frame’s second wide entry, Fox’s Jim Carrey family vehicle Mr. Popper’s Penguins, bested its $12-$15 million estimate with $18.2 million, a figure that’s in sync with the comedic actor’s last studio live-action debut Yes Man, which ultimately totaled nearly $100 million. (Indie grosses are here.) Green Lantern’s bow would »

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