The predictably tight race between “Saw VI” and “Paranormal Activity” started off in the latter’s favor.
The “Saw” franchise has become a pre-Halloween staple, with three of the past five films winning their opening weekends. And, of the two that did not (“Saw” and “Saw V”), only “Saw” lost its weekend to a rival horror/thriller film (“The Grudge”).
But the massive buzz for holdover “Paranormal Activity” is proving to be a giant thorn in the side of “Saw VI.” Friday’s returns saw “Activity” ahead $7.6 million to $7 million; even if the “Saw” film were to pull ahead Saturday and Sunday, it, based on current pacing, will still land far behind the $30.1 million gross for “Saw V.”
There was virtually no buzz for the weekend’s other big players. “Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant” earned just $2.2 million Friday and proved that simply featuring a vampire theme is not enough to do big business in 2009. “Astro Boy” did even worse, posting returns of just $1.8 million.
“Where the Wild Things Are,” last week’s winner, took a huge slide to $4.4 million on Friday, while runner-up “Law Abiding Citizen” was down to $4.1 million.