'Lego' topples 'Last Night,' 'RoboCop' to win U.S. box office title

[February 17, 2014]  By Ronald Grover and Chris Michaud

LOS ANGELES / NEW YORK — "The Lego Movie," an animated film that depicts a world based on the colorful toy blocks, collected $48.8 million to top box office charts for a second week, finishing far ahead of romantic comedy "About Last Night" which had ticket sales of $27 million on a U.S. holiday weekend that kicked off on Valentine's Day.

"RoboCop," a remake of the 1987 science fiction film about a part-man, part-cyborg crime fighter, was third with sales of $21.5 million from Friday to Sunday in the domestic market that includes the U.S. and Canada theaters, according to studio reports. Monday marks the federal Presidents Day holiday.

The romantic drama "Endless Love," one of three remakes of 1980s-era films opening in theaters, was fifth with $13.4 million, behind "Monuments Men," the story of a World War II unit that retrieves stolen art which stars George Clooney and Matt Damon and which earned $15 million in its second week, according to Rentrak.

The tracking firm said it was the third-best Presidents Day result of all time, with about $177 million expected from Friday to Sunday. Hollywood's box office is running about 11.5 percent above last year's numbers, it said.

The animated "Lego" movie has earned nearly $130 million since opening on February 7. Featuring the voices of Will Arnett and Elizabeth Banks, it portrays a world under attack by the evil Lord Business who wants to destroy the Lego universe by gluing it together. The heroes include Batman, a pirate and an astronaut, all made out of the classic children's interlocking blocks.

"About Last Night," a remake of the 1986 film that starred Rob Lowe and Demi Moore as young lovers, stars Kevin Hart and Regina Hall and was made for a relatively modest $12 million.

Rory Bruer, president of worldwide distribution for Sony Pictures, which released the film, said the comedy "knocked it out of the park," and was playing well to couples as well as groups of friends during the Valentine's Day and U.S. holiday weekend.

"RoboCop," which cost about $100 million to make, was performing especially well in international markets, Bruer said, and was on track to take in about $30 million domestically since opening on Wednesday.

"Endless Love" is a remake of a 1981 film starring Brooke Shields which was a modest hit, but saw its theme song by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie become a No. 1 hit, scoring Academy Award, Golden Globe and Grammy nominations.

"The Lego Movie" was distributed by Warner Brothers, a unit of Time Warner. Sony's Screen Gems unit distributed "About Last Night." "The Monuments Men" was distributed by Sony.

"Endless Love" was distributed by Comcast's Universal Pictures.

(Reporting by Ronald Grover and Chris Michaud)

[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.