Who’da thunk it? As much as most of us probably laughed when we heard that a “Paranormal Activity 3″ was coming to a theater near us, thousands spent their money to check it out this weekend, making it a record-breaking film. Paramount’s threequel/prequel will have to settle with merely being the second- biggest horror debut ever, the eighth-biggest R-rated opening, and the top October launch. Tragic, I know. The $5 million film grossed a massive $54 million this weekend, which is a 35% jump from Paranormal Activity 2′s $40.6 million opening this time last year. The film had a massively front loaded weekend, the ninth-biggest on record, with a mere 2.06x weekend multiplier. Still, that was better than the 2.01x weekend multiplier for Paranormal Activity 2 last year (the sixth-smallest such multiplier). The picture played 53% under-25 and 54% female. Considering the film pulled just in $1.7 million more at midnight, the $26 million opening day (around $6 million more than Paranormal Activity 2′s $20.6 million Friday) and $14 million jump in total opening weekend compared to the last film, there is a clear growth in this series. Which probably means there will be a “Paranormal Activity 4″… The first film opened very slowly, with massive per-screen averages leading up to a pre-Halloween wide release that grossed $21 million against the opening weekend of the comparatively under performing Saw VI ($14 million). Paranormal Activity ended up with $109 million, while the sequel opened with a massive $40 million weekend but ended with just $84 million (a meager 2.1x weekend-to-final gross multiplier). Even if the third picture manages equally poor legs, it will still end up with $113 million. Whether or not the series has peaked with the third installment like Saw III, this uber-cheap franchise has been a licence to print money for the last three years and should continue to be so for the next few Halloweens. Paramount has scored a studio’s dream – blockbuster grosses on a franchise with minuscule costs. It’s already done $26 million worldwide, giving the film a massive (for a cheap horror film) $80 million worldwide debut. Come what may, they will be milking this series until the audience stops caring. Did you catch “Paranormal Activity 3″ this weekend? If not, does the movie’s opening weekend success make you wanna see it now? Source
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Surprise: ‘Paranormal Activity 3′ Rakes In Highest September/October Opening Weekend Numbers Ever
