In its fourth weekend, DreamWorks’ CGI hit Madagascar continued to prove a favorite for moviegoers, as the comedy took in $11.1 million from 3,533 theaters. Box Office Guru notes that the film had one of the smallest drops in the top ten, falling only 35%. In fact, Madagascar is the first movie of the year to stay in 3,500+ theaters in its fourth frame. Thus far, the film has grossed $147.2 million.
In other box office news, Batman Begins began, but not quite as big as many people had expected. Over its five-day weekend, the movie enjoyed a healthy launch of $71.1 million, with an estimated $46.9 million coming from the Friday-to-Sunday period. Opening in 3,858 theaters as of Friday, the PG-13 flick averaged $12,166 per cinema, easily taking the #1 spot in the weekend’s top ten. However, unlike Batman, Batman Returns, and Batman Forever, which each broke the all-time opening weekend record, Batman Begins failed to capture the audiences that such other superhero films as Spider-Man ($114.8 million), X2: X-Men United ($85.6 million), or even Hulk ($62.1 million) had over three days. Nonetheless, it remains to be seen how Batman Begins continues in the weeks to come.