What if the Terminator tried to make a movie comeback and almost nobody cared Arnold Schwarzenegger faced that question over the weekend as “The Last Stand,†his first star vehicle since returning to Hollywood from politics, took in an abysmal $6.3 million at the North American box office. That total was good enough only for 10th place at theaters. Mr. Schwarzenegger found box-office gold time and again as the Terminator, but now Lionsgate finds itself counting on his overseas fans to make up for the roughly $45 million it spent to make this new movie.
“Mama,†meanwhile, a low-budget thriller from Universal Pictures starring Jessica Chastain, was a bigger-than-expected No. 1, taking in about $28.1 million, according to Hollywood.com, which compiles box-office data. “Zero Dark Thirty†(Sony) finished second â€" it also features Ms. Chastain â€" by selling about $17.6 million in tickets, for a five-week total of $55.9 million.
Lifted y a wider release and eight Oscar nominations, “Silver Linings Playbook†(the Weinstein Company) soared to third place in its 10th week in theaters, taking in an estimated $11.4 million, for a total of $55.3 million. “Gangster Squad†(Warner Brothers) limped along in fourth place, with $9.1 million in sales, for a two-week total of $32.2 million. “Broken City†(20th Century Fox), a crime drama starring Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe, was a weak fifth; it might have siphoned interest from “The Last Stand†but still managed to take in only about $9 million in its first weekend in theaters.
