Directed by Renny Harlin (Deep Blue, Die Hard 2: Die Harder, Cutthroat Island) the warlock-based
horror film The Covenant topped the U.S. box office while earning a mere $9 million. Not screened for critics–and little-loved by critics who did go see it over the weekend–The Covenant has the dubious distinction of being the lowest-grossing film to win the weekend this year on a weekend that saw income drop 26% over last year. (Think back to a time when we were all talking about The Exorcism Of Emily Rose.)
What did it beat out? Well, two-time box office champ Invincible for one. And also Hollywoodland, the George Reeves biopic/mystery that won Ben Affleck best acting honors at the Venice Film Festival this weekend. (No, really!)
Let's go to the boards:
1. Covenant (Sony), $9 million
2. Hollywoodland (Focus), $6 million
3. Invincible (Buena Vista), $5.8 million
4. The Protector (Weinstein Company), $5 million
5. Crank (Lionsgate), $4.8 million
Source: The Hollywood Reporter