How to Train Your Dragon Low Boxoffice: 3D Tickets Too Pricey?

by Manny Castro | March 28, 2010 at 09:17 am

163 views | 0 Recommendations | 0 comments

DreamWorks Animation's critically acclaimed How to Train Your Dragon under-performed at the box office this weekend. It grossed $43.3 million.

To compare, Avatar opened with $77 million on December 18, 2009, Alice in Wonderland with $116.1 million on March 5, and Monsters vs. Aliens (last year before the 3D fad truly took off) with $59.3 million.

Some of the blame is due to theater owners who decided to raise 3D ticket prices this weekend. It may have forced audiences, especially parents, to choose 2D instead since the price was out of their budget.

Boxoffice Predictions for March 2010

Now there's curiosity about how Warner Bros' Clash of the Titans will perform next weekend. Titans was originally set to be released in 2D, but got converted to 3D at the last moment after Avatar broke box office records. Maybe the studio should have stuck to their original plan.

Alice in Wonderland, despite losing 3D and IMAX screens, only dropped to second place with $17.3 million. Its total is now $293.1 million and $656.1 million worldwide.

Hot Tub Time Machine debuted in third with $13.6 million. With a budget of $36 million, it'll make a profit.

The Bounty Hunter and Diary of a Wimpy Kid round out the top 5 with $12.4 million and $10 million. Meanwhile, Avatar is now up to $740.4 million domestically.

Aside from Clash of the Titans, Miley Cyrus' The Last Song opens on Wednesday and Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too on Friday.