Box Office Report: ‘In the Heart of the Sea’ Flounders, ‘Mockingjay’ Finishes 1st

With an estimated budget in the $100 million range, In the Heart of the Sea‘s $11 million opening weekend is a big disappointment for Warner Bros Pictures. Director Ron Howard reunited with his Rush star, Chris Hemsworth, to take on the big budget whale tale but audiences just weren’t into the seafaring story. By opening small, In the Heart of the Sea handed The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 its fourth first place finish in a row. But with Star Wars looming on the horizon, Mockingjay‘s reign at the top of the box office chart is about to come to an end.

The In the Heart of the Sea Plot: In the winter of 1820, the New England whaling ship Essex was assaulted by something no one could believe: a whale of mammoth size and will, and an almost human sense of vengeance. The real-life maritime disaster would inspire Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick. But that told only half the story.

In the Heart of the Sea reveals the encounter’s harrowing aftermath, as the ship’s surviving crew is pushed to their limits and forced to do the unthinkable to stay alive. Braving storms, starvation, panic and despair, the men will call into question their deepest beliefs, from the value of their lives to the morality of their trade, as their captain searches for direction on the open sea and his first mate still seeks to bring the great whale down.

Top 10 Box Office – December 11-13, 2015

1. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 – $11,300,000
2. In the Heart of the Sea – $11,005,000
3. The Good Dinosaur – $10,497,000
4. Creed – $10,120,000
5. Krampus – $8,010,000
6. Spectre – $4,000,000
7. The Night Before – $3,900,000
8. The Peanuts Movie – $4,495,290
9. SpotlightBrooklyn – $3,832,000
10. Brooklyn – $3,300,000