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Hollywood Box Office Report: ‘Skyfall’ dominates, ‘Playing for Keeps’ flops with $2.1-M Friday

Gerard Butler’s new romance film placed # 6; there is no slowing down James Bond though as”Skyfall” edges past “Breaking Dawn– Part 2″ to come in # 1.

James Bond’s Skyfall, and other holdovers ruled Friday in North America.

Playing for Keeps, also starring Jessica Biel, Uma Thurman, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Dennis Quaid, came in # 6. Despite a B+ CinemaScore, the movie is expected to open to only $6-M for the weekend, marking another box-office flop for Butler after recent surfing drama Chasing Mavericks.

FilmDistrict acquired US distribution rights to Playing for Keeps in Y 2011. Directed by Gabriele Muccino, The Pursuit of Happyness, the story follows the travails of a washed-up soccer star who hopes to redeem himself by coaching his son’s soccer team but falls prey to desirable single moms.

Mr. Butler has a mixed record at the box office since 300 made him a Hollywood star, grossing $456.1-M worldwide in the Spring of Y 2007. His highest-grossing film since is The Ugly Truth at $205.2-M. Last year, his Coriolanus and Machine Gun Preacher both fell flat at the domestic box office.

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Friday belonged to MGM and Sony’s Skyfall, which pasted Twilight: Breaking Dawn– Part 2 to come in #. 1 with $3.1-M. It is rare for a film to return to the #1 position in its 5th weekend of play.

Skyfall now has grossed $235.7-M domestically and has a strong shot at winning this weekend. The Wild Card is DreamWorks Animation and Paramount’s Rise of the Guardians. The 3-D cartoon came in # 4 Friday with $2.3-M, it is expected to move up.

Guardians has struggled to date, with a domestic take of roughly $54-M. DWA and Paramount believe the holiday-themed movie can improve its standing by having strong legs throughout the year-end holidays.

Placing # 2 on Friday was Summit’s Breaking Dawn 2, which took in $2.8-M for a projected $9-M weekend. The final title in the Vampire franchise should finish Sunday with a domestic total of $268.5-M.

Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln is a hit among adults, grossing $2.6-M Friday and topping the $90-M mark.

Life of Pi tied with Lincoln, grossing $2.26 for a take of $54.9-M.

This weekend and last mark the lull before the Christmas crush begins with the 14 December release of Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.