The Simpsons rakes in over $70 million in America
Story by Jack Foley
D’OH ho ho! THE Simpsons Movie raked in a mightily impressive $71.9 million at the American box office this weekend (July 27-29) to easily take the top spot.
The big screen tale of the Springfield family easily outdid the opposition, sending last week’s top earner I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry into second place with $19 million, and Harry Potter & The Order of the Phoenix into third with $17.1 million.
The figures were immediately hailed by Chris Aronson, senior vice president for distribution at 20th Century Fox, who described the studio’s mood as “ecstatic”.
He told the Hollywood Reporter: “It far exceeded even the most optimistic of expectations.”
What’s more, The Simpsons Movie enjoyed the fifth best opening weekend of the year, beating the likes of Transformers, Ghost Rider and Ratatouille.
Paul Dergarabedian, president of US box-office tracker Media By Numbers, said that Fox’s gamble had paid off in adapting the long-running comedy series into a big screen venture.
And he told Hollywood Reporter: “It’s unprecedented to have the longest-running sitcom of all time still on the air and have it also be the number one movie in theatres.”
In what is proving an excellent summer for Fox, the distributor still has “Die Hard 4.0 and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer in the top 10.