Apparently, Americans are less inspired by an historical recreation of Christ's birth than watching Him get beaten to a pulp for two hours. Despite the advantage of opening to a wide berth at the box office this weekend, The Nativity Story performed to about half the expected business, bowing in fourth place with a mere $8 million take. Meanwhile, last week's favorites were one-two-three again, with Happy Feet, Casino Royale, and Déjà Vu making roughly $17 million, $15 million, and $11 million respectively. The other big openings made less combined than The Nativity Story, which should make Jesus happy: Turistas, a cheap cash-in on the torture porn craze, netted a mere $3.5 million for eighth place while Van Wilder: The Rise Of Taj, an even cheaper cash-in on a modest National Lampoon hit, limped into the Top Ten with $2.3 million. A quiet week on the arthouse circuit found Volver continuing to dominate with a per-screen-average of $13,500, but it's still only in 30 theaters, perhaps waiting to pounce once Oscar nominations are announced.
More detailed numbers are available at Box Office Mojo.