'The Purge' doubles the debut of 'The Internship'

'The Purge' doubles the debut of 'The Internship'

The Internship had to settle for fourth place, while The Purge kicked everyone's asses with $36.4 million. The success of The Purge can be attributed entirely to a solid marketing campaign of an intriguing premise, which brought people in droves. It certainly wasn't the result of good word-of-mouth, because once there, audiences were gravely disappointed. Keep your eyes on next week's numbers, because you can expect this mofo to contend for the all-time record second-week drop. For that matter, The Internship, which audiences liked, may also face some severe difficulties next week, when it comes face-to-face with a highly touted comedy, This Is The End.

EW reported:

"Many assumed that the weekend before the debut of Man of Steel would be a calm one at the box office, but that was not the case. Universal’s thriller The Purge surged into the top spot this weekend and shattered all expectations with a massive $36.4 million debut. The film, produced by Paranormal Activity mastermind Jason Blum, cost only $3 million to make, and because its marketing campaign was predominantly digital (read: inexpensive), the micro-budgeted film will become a hugely profitable release for the currently on-fire Universal. The Purge had an intriguing premise: for one night every year, all crime (including murder) is legal. Universal’s marketing team effectively communicated that twisted plot in trailers and ads, and the premise helped pack theaters, though it didn’t deliver on audiences’ high expectations. Crowds issued the film a discouraging 'C' CinemaScore grade, and the film sank 38 percent from Friday to Saturday — a sign of poor word-of-mouth."

"Fox’s Vince Vaughn/Owen Wilson comedy The Internship opened in fourth place with $18.1 million, a somewhat tepid result from the duo that helped Wedding Crashers debut with $33.9 million back in 2005. Google, which is featured throughout the film, is likely used to better launches. While The Internship did exceed Fox’s modest expectations, its mild $5,377 per theater average and the looming competitor This is the End may hurt its box office longevity. On the bright side, The $58 million comedy did earn a 'B+' CinemaScore grade from audiences."