Parisians gather in front of a cinema playing "Fifty Shades of Grey" directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, inspired by the 2011 erotic romance novel by British author E. L. James, in Paris, France, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2015. Children as young as 12 are heading to see the highly-anticipated erotic drama âFifty Shades of Greyâ in France on its release Wednesday, after the countryâs film board decided against giving it an adult certificate. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)
LOS ANGELES (AP) – The heat on "Fifty Shades of Grey's" blockbuster debut cooled ever so slightly as the final four-day weekend numbers were revealed on Tuesday. The R-rated movie, which cost only $40 million to produce, took in $93 million from 3,646 locations across the long President's Day holiday.
Although initial estimates put the four-day gross at over $94 million, director Sam Taylor-Johnson's adaptation of E.L. James' steamy best seller still took the crown for best February opening ever, unseating the 2004 record set by "The Passion of the Christ."
Matthew Vaughn's R-rated comic book adaptation "Kingsman: The Secret Service" also exceeded expectations in its first four days in theaters, bringing in $41.8 million from 3,204 locations, helping to solidify an overall record-breaking President's Day weekend at the box office.
The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Monday, followed by distribution studio, gross, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Tuesday by Rentrak:
1. "Fifty Shades of Grey," Universal, $93,010,350, 3,646 locations, $25,510 average, $93,010,350, 1 week.
2. "Kingsman: The Secret Service," 20th Century Fox, $41,761,512, 3,204 locations, $13,034 average, $41,761,512, 1 week.
3. "The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water," Paramount, $40,007,494, 3,654 locations, $10,949 average, $103,140,055, 2 weeks.
4. "American Sniper," Warner Bros., $18,779,843, 3,436 locations, $5,466 average, $306,478,136, 8 weeks.
5. "Jupiter Ascending," Warner Bros., $10,755,447, 3,181 locations, $3,381 average, $33,876,593, 2 weeks.
6. "Paddington," The Weinstein Company, $5,770,559, 2,244 locations, $2,572 average, $63,963,867, 5 weeks.
7. "Seventh Son," Universal, $4,841,540, 2,874 locations, $1,685 average, $14,111,980, 2 weeks.
8. "The Imitation Game," The Weinstein Company, $4,179,402, 1,551 locations, $2,695 average, $80,311,825, 12 weeks.
9. "The Wedding Ringer," Sony, $3,707,333, 1,456 locations, $2,546 average, $60,050,350, 5 weeks.
10. "Project Almanac," Paramount, $3,300,551, 1,732 locations, $1,906 average, $20,130,127, 3 weeks.
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