Harry Potter and his wizard-school pals enjoyed a wand-erful weekend at the box office.
The latest installment of the series conjured up $77.4 million for a first-place finish, according to studio estimates released yesterday.
“The three days look light, but that’s deceptive,” said Jeff Bock, an analyst with Exhibitor Relations.
While the current film’s weekend grosses are the lowest in the series, “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” opened last Wednesday with $44.2 million, a series record, and grossed a total of $140 million in five days, Bock said.
“This one actually played the strongest out of all of [the Potter films],” Bock said.
“It’s obvious that Muggles are just wild about Harry,” said Bock.
The other top weekend films also did well – with audiences buzzing about what they saw and coming back for repeat viewings, Bock said.
“Transformers” dropped to second place, with a three-day take of $36 million, boosting its total to nearly $223 million.
“Ratatouille” took in $18 million for a total gross of $143 million, while “Live Free or Die Hard” earned another $10.9 million, to bust past the $100 million mark with $102.9 million.
“License to Wed” was fifth, with $7.4 million.