By WSJ Staff
- Warner Bros/Everett
“The Dark Knight Rises” topped the weekend box office, but much of the entertainment world was focused on tragedy and not theater receipts.
Warner Bros. had decided to withhold announcing early box office totals this weekend in the wake of the shooting rampage in Aurora, Colo., at a screening of the new Batman movie “The Dark Knight Rises” that left 12 people dead and 58 wounded. Rivals studios followed suit.
The official numbers were finally released today, and according to Hollywood.com they showed that “The Dark Knight Rises” pulled in $160,887,295 million to top the box office.
The box office total of “The Dark Knight Rises” places it among the top weekend of all time, but behind “The Avengers” ($207.4 million) and “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2″ ($169.2 million).
“The Avengers” and “Harry Potter” were both 3-D releases. “The Dark Knight Rises” posted the biggest 2-D opening ever, beating out 2008’s “The Dark Knight” and its $158,411,483 opening weekend tally.
Industry observers had expected “The Dark Knight Rises,” which cost about $250 milli0n to produce to bring in more. It had been on track to bring in around $185 million before the massacre in Colorado, which prompted law enforcement officials to tighten security at some movie theaters and spurred Warner Bros. to pull the plug on some commercials and publicity events.
Meanwhile, accused mass murderer James Holmes made his first appearance in court today in Aurora, Colorado. Police allege that Holmes was the gunman in the Colorado theater shootings.
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Sort of fitting, based on the effect the last movie had on me and obviously many others. I was put off by the affinity to total anarchy. My impression of an arch villain from the batman comics I read voraciously, never spoke of a senseless child preying on innocents. I was bothered to the extent I never wanted to watch the “Joker Movie” again. It was not a batman movie. It has touched everyone exposed.