'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I' Smashes Records: Box Office Report November 19-21

Just how big was this weekend's opening of 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I'? Well, take the combined earnings of the other nine movies in this weekend's top 10, about $60 million, then double that number, and you still won't reach the sales figure that 'Potter' conjured up.

According to studio estimates, 'Potter' earned $125.1 million this weekend, a record for the franchise that far surpasses the $102.7 million earned by 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' in 2005, the last time a 'Potter' picture opened over just a three-day weekend. 'Deathly Hallows' also set a franchise record with $24 million in midnight screenings on Friday morning. Its full Friday take was $61.2 million, yet another franchise record and the fifth-biggest single-day sales figure in box office history. If that $125.1 million figure holds after final numbers are released on Monday, it will be the sixth biggest opening weekend of all time, behind May's 'Iron Man 2' ($128.1 million).

Even with such staggering numbers, 'Deathly Hallows' still slightly underperformed predictions, which anticipated a take as high as $130 million. Maybe that's because the movie still faced a small amount of family-audience competition from 'Megamind,' still going strong with an estimated $16.2 million in its third weekend. It still boasts an enormous screen count (3,779 venues, second behind 'Potter's' 4,125), so if 'Potter' screenings were sold out, chances are good 'Megamind' was still playing next door. In three weeks, it's earned $109.5 million.

'Unstoppable' was third this weekend with an estimated $13.1 million, down just 42 percent from last week's opening. In 10 days, the runaway train thriller has earned $42.0 million.

In fourth place, 'Due Date' was the weekend's top comedy, with an estimated $9.2 million and a modest third-weekend drop of 40 percent. It's grossed $72.7 million to date.

Opening at No. 5, Russell Crowe's action thriller 'The Next Three Days' disappointed with just an estimated $6.8 million. In a weekend dominated by Harry Potter, expectations were low to begin with, but Crowe's movies these days tend to open between $11 and $14 million. Apparently, there was still plenty of competition for the guy audience with 'Unstoppable' and 'Due Date.' Hey, is it too late for Crowe to get himself cast in 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II'?

The full top 10:
1. 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I,' $125.1 million (4,125 screens), new release
2. 'Megamind,' $16.2 million (3,779), $109.5 million total
3. 'Unstoppable,' $13.1 million (3,209), $42.0 million
4. 'Due Date,' $9.2 million (3,229), $72.7 million
5. 'The Next Three Days,' $6.8 million (2,564), new release
6. 'Morning Glory,' $5.2 million (2,544, $19.9 million
7. 'Skyline,' $3.4 million (2,883), $17.6 million
8. 'Red,' $2.5 million (2,034), $83.6 million
9. 'For Colored Girls,' $2.4 million (1,216), $34.5 million
10. 'Fair Game,' $1.5 million (386), $3,7 million

•Follow Gary Susman on Twitter @garysusman.

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'Harry Potter' Works Thanksgiving Magic: Box Office Report November 26-28

Harry, Ron and Hermione may be spending a miserable winter hiding out in various forests, but they can be thankful for holiday weekend moviegoers, who made 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I' the top-grossing film for the second week in a row. It's an impressive feat, considering that four new wide-release movies opened Wednesday to steal some of Harry's Thanksgiving thunder.

According to studio estimates, the Potter picture pulled another $50.3 million over the last three days. That's down a striking 60 percent from last week's business, which might be cause for alarm if the movie's domestic gross over its first 10 days weren't already up to 220.4 million. Over the five-day holiday, it earned $76.3 million, which is also better than its four new competitors over the same period.

Still, 'Tangled' was close behind, with an estimated $49.1 million for the weekend. And with a five-day total of $69.0 million, the Disney take on the Rapunzel tale scored the best Thanksgiving opening since Disney's own 'Toy Story 2' back in 1999. (That film earned $57.4 million over the three-day weekend and $80.1 million from Wednesday to Sunday.) It also boasted the best per-screen average ($13,628) of any top 10 movie this week. Credit the Disney marketing machine, glowing reviews, a princess story that also had some boy appeal, a PG rating that was a little more family-friendly than the dark 'Deathly Hallows' and 3-D ticket surcharges.

A distant third but still holding strong (stronger, anyway, than three of the four newcomers), 'Megamind' grossed another estimated $12.9 million. Like 'Tangled,' it's benefiting from 3-D ticket prices and family crowds, and it's also playing in more theaters than every other movie except 'Tangled' and 'Deathly Hallows.' Down just 20 percent from last weekend, 'Megamind' claims a four-weekend total of $130.5 million.

Opening at No. 4 was the Cher/Christina Aguilera musical 'Burlesque.' Pundits had been expecting an opening weekend of $13 million with a five-day total of $19 million. It performed slightly below those guesses, earning an estimated $11.8 million over the weekend and $17.2 million since it opened on Wednesday. Despite tireless promotion from its two leads, the movie still may have seemed like an enigma to potential viewers -- a musical not based on a familiar Broadway title, a pop star (Aguilera) who'd never acted in a film before, teasing hints of adult sexuality wrapped in a PG-13 rating and wishy-washy reviews.

LIke 'Megamind,' 'Unstoppable' is still in good shape, taking the No. 5 spot with an estimated $11.75 million, just a hair behind fourth-place 'Burlesque.' (When final numbers are released Monday, those positions could switch.) The runaway-train thriller barely lost any of last week's business (just 10 percent), for a three-weekend total of $60.7 million.

Debuting in sixth place was 'Love and Other Drugs,' which scored an estimated $9.9 million over the weekend and $14.0 million since Wednesday. That's near the low end of expectations, which had been in the $9-$11 million range for Friday to Sunday and $14-$16 million over the first five days. On the minus side, the romantic drama had a tough-sell adult premise, middling reviews and word-of-mouth, and competition for the adult female audience from 'Burlesque.' On the plus side, much hype about a frequently naked Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway.

The last of this weekend's new wide releases, 'Faster' opened in a disappointing seventh place. Predictions had been around $11-$13 million for the weekend and $17-$19 million for the first five days, but it opened with only an estimated $8.7 million weekend and $12.2 million since Wednesday. Despite the return of Dwayne Johnson to action films for the first time in five years, the absence of other new action product and positive word-of-mouth, the movie was underhyped and under-released (on just 2,454 screens). Plus, it had to compete with the still-popular 'Unstoppable.' Nonetheless, $12.2 million is more than half the movie's reported $24 million budget, so 'Faster' should turn a modest profit even if it's out of theaters soon.

Opening in limited release, 'The King's Speech' set a record for the best per-screen average of 2010, earning a regal $87,448 on each of four screens. Sure, that's just $350,000, but watch for its numbers to grow as it rides a wave of strong Oscar buzz for Colin Firth's performance and opens wider across the country.

The full top 10 (three-day grosses):
1. 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I,' $50.3 million (4,125 screens), $220.4 million total
2. 'Tangled,' $49.1 million (3,603), $69.0 million
3. 'Megamind,' $12.9 million (3,411), $130.5 million
4. 'Burlesque,' $11.80 million (3,037), $17.2 million
5. 'Unstoppable,' $11.75 million (3,183), $60.7 million
6. 'Love and Other Drugs,' $9.9 million (2,455), $14.0 million
7. 'Faster,' $8.7 million (2,454), $12.2 million
8. 'Due Date,' $7.3 million (2,555), $85.0 million
9. 'The Next Three Days,' $4.8 million (2,564), $14.6 million
10. 'Morning Glory,' $4.0 million (2,441), $26.5 million

•Follow Gary Susman on Twitter @garysusman.

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