It would seem that American moviegoers like their summer blockbusters a little tweaked these days, as two unusual superheroes topped this weekend's box-office charts. (Though a more conventional cape-wearing do-gooder will undoubtedly usurp them next weekend with The Dark Knight.) Hellboy II won the weekend with $35.9 million, substantially higher than its predecessor's $23.3 million opening take, while Hancock had a sturdy second-week showing at No. 2 with $33 million, providing Will Smith with his fifth consecutive blockbuster grossing over $150 million.
Third place went to the new release Journey To The Center Of The Earth, with $20.6 million. Despite the fact that only roughly a third of the theaters screening the film could do so in its intended 3D format, those moviehouses offering that extra dimension accounted for roughly 80 percent of the film's opening take, indicating that audiences still love a good gimmick. The weekend's third major-studio release, the Eddie Murphy-starring Meet Dave, fared less well, debuting at No. 7 with a mere $5.3 million. (Perhaps Murphy and Mike Myers–whose The Love Guru has plummeted to No. 15 after only four weeks–are facing some sort of Shrek-related karmic comeuppance… though Murphy's last live-action film, the reprehensible Norbit, did manage to crack the $30 million mark upon its release.)
Elsewhere in the top 10, the controversialWall-E dropped to No. 4 with $18.5 million, clearly suffering from its ultra-liberal, fat-bashing hypocrisy as it makes its way toward the $200 million mark. Kung Fu Panda, at No. 8, passed that benchmark this weekend after six weeks, while this week's No. 10, Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull, enjoys what's likely to be its last week in the top 10 with well over $300 million in receipts under its fedora. Wanted (No. 5 with $11.6 million), Get Smart (No. 6 with $7.1 million), and Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (No. 9 with $2.4 million) round out the top 10.
More detailed numbers can be found at boxofficemojo.com.