Box Office: ‘If I Stay’ Earns Strong $1.1 Million Thursday Night

The tearjerker If I Stay launched Thursday night at 7 p.m. with a solid $1.1 million at the U.S. box office, in over 2,902 locations.

The feature, starring Chloe Grace Moretz and Jamie Blackley, is expected to top the charts this weekend with $18 million or more. If it’s anything like the film adaptation The Fault In Our Stars, which exceeded expectations and debuted with $48 million, the newcomer will surely be the movie to see for female teens.

R.J. Cutler is making his feature film directorial debut with the adaptation of the novel written by Gayle Forman. MGM and New Line co-produced and co-financed the $11 million film.

If I Stay, backed by Warner Bros./New Line and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, centers on a 17-year-old girl who loses her family in a car accident, which puts her in a coma. She must choose to live or die —  fight to live for her boyfriend, or join her family in death.

Below is the film’s official movie synopsis:

Mia Hall (Chloë Grace Moretz) thought the hardest decision she would ever face would be whether to pursue her musical dreams at Juilliard or follow a different path to be with the love of her life, Adam (Jamie Blackley). But what should have been a carefree family drive changes everything in an instant, and now her own life hangs in the balance. Caught between life and death for one revealing day, Mia has only one decision left, which will not only decide her future but her ultimate fate. “If I Stay” is based on the best-selling novel of the same name.

Another newcomer this weekend is Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, which features Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Mickey Rourke and Bruce Willis. The sequel is debuting at 2,894 locations, and is predicted to make $15 million for the opening weekend.

Sony’s football drama When the Game Stands Tall, starring Jim Caviezel, Laura Dern, Michael Chiklis and Alexander Ludwig, opened Thursday with $425,000 from 2,180 locations.

The film is based on the story of Northern California high school De La Salle’s 151-game winning streak, and what happened after the team finally lost. It is predicted to finish between $8 million and $10 million in 2,670 locations.

All three films will be competing against tentpole holdovers Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Guardians of the Galaxy, which are going strong heading into their third and fourth weeks.