‘The Lego Movie’ Stacks Up $69.1 Million Debut

Featuring an all-star cast of Chris Pratt, Will Ferrell, Elizabeth Banks, Will Arnett, Nick Offerman, Alison Brie, Charlie Day, Liam Neeson, and Morgan Freeman, “The Lego Movie” took first place at the North American box office with an outstanding $69.1 million. The opening is the second best all time for the month of February, behind only Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ $83.3 million debut in 2004.

Thanks to a strong fan base, “The Lego Movie” stacked up one of the best openings for an original animated film ever and joins the ranks of “Up” ($68.1 million), “Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax” ($70.2 million) and “The Incredibles” ($70.5 million). “The Simpsons Movie” currently holds the record for the biggest opening of an original animated film with $74 million.

George Clooney’s “Monuments Men” took second with a $22.7 million debut. The film follows a band of art scholars-turned-soldiers as they travel through war-torn Europe to save Western civilization’s most precious art. The opening is the biggest ever for a Clooney-directed film and is comparable to “Captain Phillips” and “Argo”, although this film is not receiving all positive reviews. The film received a 33% rotten rating from RottenTomatoes.com.

In its fourth week, “Ride Along” dropped from first to third place with $9.4 million. The cop-buddy comedy starring Ice Cube and Kevin Hart had been a stud at the box office for the month of January, debuting with a January record of $54.2 million and staying #1 at the box office for three weeks straight.

Disney’s “Frozen” is still going strong with $6.9 million in its twelfth week, dropping from second to fourth place. The animated film has earned $369 million in North America and is on track to surpass the $1 billion mark worldwide in the next couple of weeks.

Top 10 Films at the Weekend Box Office: Feb. 7-9

1. “The Lego Movie” – $69.1 million
2. “The Monuments Men” – $22.7 million
3. “Ride Along” – $9.4 million
4. “Frozen” – $6.9 million
5. “That Awkward Moment” – $5.5 million
6. “Lone Survivor” – $5.3 million
7. “Vampire Academy” – $4.1 million
8. “The Nut Job” – $3.8 million
9. “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit” – $3.6 million
10. “Labor Day” – $3.2 million