As many predicted, Peter Jackson’s return to Middle Earth in the much-anticipated prequel “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” demolished the competition at the box office this past weekend, pulling in a whopping $84.8 million in three days – bigger than any of the previous “Lord of the Rings” movies. But, while part one of the three-part planned epic dethroned the previous reigning December box office champ, 2007’s “I Am Legend,” many box-office experts are expressing surprise that it didn’t cross the $100 million mark as many had predicted.
While representatives at Warner Bros. seem assured that the opening is extremely promising and there is no cause to worry about the film’s performance, statistics may prove otherwise. As Grady Smith at Entertainment Weekly reports, the film had a roughly 25% drop from Friday to Saturday, which is quite a big number considering it was opening weekend. One has to contemplate whether the devoted fans of this franchise are as excited for this “Unexpected Journey” as the studio anticipated, or whether the huge opening was mostly the result of all those years of buildup and publicity.
One possibility for the drop-off could be that there has been A LOT of press attention surrounding this movie. Whether it was the hunt for a director way back in the struggling early stages of development, Jackson’s controversial decision to film in 48 frames per second, or rumors of mistreatment of animals, it certainly hasn’t been an easy road for Bilbo Baggins and his crew to get here. And even though the film has been getting decent reviews (it is currently at 65% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes), it remains to be seen whether legions of fans will be as ardently fervid as they were for the original “Lord of the Rings” trilogy.
The holiday season should play in favor of “The Hobbit,” as droves will descend upon movie theaters in the weeks to come. But with Oscar season in full swing now that the SAG and Golden Globe nominations are out, and with sterling competition like “Lincoln” and the Christmas releases of “Les Miserables” and “Django Unchained,” the competition will be stiff.
Like our little Hobbit friends Bilbo and Frodo, this franchise seems likely to overcome any odds stacked against it. Plus, an image has already been released of Orlando Bloom (where the heck has he been lately?) reprising his role as bow-wielding elf extraordinaire Legolas in the third film. Now that’s reason enough to stick around, if you ask me.