Predators, Minions Fight Vampires in Weekend Box Office Predictions Game

July 06, 2010

Before we talk Predators and kick off the new round of our interactive Weekend Box Office Prophet Game that you can play, I need to present the way overdue results from the last round two weekends ago (last weekend was missed due to vacation). The Prophet beat the players 3-2 (view the results) despite missing Grown Ups badly, so top player finisher jwerk takes home the consolation DVD prize (view the overall leaderboard).

On to this upcoming weekend round. New kids on the block Predators and the animated Despicable Me are both gunning to unseat The Twilight Saga: Eclipse powered by Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner. M. Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender and Pixar's Toy Story 3 rounds out the 5 films you'll be predicting the weekend box office totals for between Friday, July 9 and Sunday, July 11. Once submitted, your prediction is averaged in with the other players for a cumulative score that competes against the Prophet predictions.

Should the average player differences between the actual box office gross and predicted grosses beat the Prophet for 3 or more of the 5 films, the top player will win the following films on Blu-ray that include a tie-in to one of this week's films. A tie rules in favor of the players.

Circle of Pain on Blu-ray
Showgirls NC-17 15th Anniversary Edition on Blu-ray
NEW THIS ROUND: Predator Ultimate Collector's Edition on Blu-ray

If the Prophet comes out on top then all three prizes will rollover into the next round and be joined by a fourth. We will still award a small DVD prize to the top place finisher in the event that happens.

Once you are successfully logged in, the average player scores will update in real time below as new predictions are entered. The entry period will close at 9pm PST Thursday, July 8, with this round's results being published Monday evening when the final box office numbers are released.

There are currently 51 players up against the Prophet

The entry period for July 9 - 11 has already ended. Follow the weekly results at the Weekend Box Office Prophet main page.

Despicable Me
Looking to bump Toy Story 3 from the top of kids list is Despicable Me, Universal's new animated comedy starring the voice of Steve Carell and a small army of cute little minions. It opens on over 3,200 screens and will benefit from 3D ticket prices.

All: $38.0 Me: n/a Prophet: $31.8 Actual: $56.4

Predators
Call it a reboot, sequel or what have you, Predators comes to theaters with the tall task of returning a scarred franchise to its glory days. It will play to the action and proud movie nerd crowd so maybe a look at the Kick-Ass box office is in order. Predators opens on 2,700 screens.

All: $24.6 Me: n/a Prophet: $23.1 Actual: $24.8

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
The box office juggernaut enters its second weekend trying to dodge the rapid decline its predecessors faced. From last Friday through Sunday it made $69 million sandwiched between a Wednesday opening and Monday holiday. Expect anywhere between a 40 and as much as 70 percent drop.

All: $31.8 Me: n/a Prophet: $29.2 Actual: $31.7

The Last Airbender
The Last Airbender has held off one poor review after another on its way to earning $40.5 million its opening weekend. Much of that could be from core fans of the television show and word of mouth is not exactly enticing repeat viewings. The drop could be sizable in weekend two unless curiosity wins out.

All: $17.7 Me: n/a Prophet: $19.2 Actual: $16.6

Toy Story 3
Toy Story 3 enters its fourth weekend in release dropping around 45% of its business in between each weekend. Last weekend it drew $30.2 million with the help of the July 4 holiday. This weekend it will lose a few 3D screens and eyeballs to its first animated competition, Despicable Me.

All: $18.6 Me: n/a Prophet: $15.9 Actual: $21.0