Box Office - Shrek Screws Carrie Bradshaw

Because it didn't get off to a huge start, Sex and the City 2 didn't win the Memorial Day weekend, and actually, there's a really good chance that it won't even be the top movie when you roll Thursday's numbers into it. The sequel started out with $14 million on its early opening day, then added another $13 million on Friday, but as we mentioned in yesterday's update, that was likely to be the end of the good times for Sex and the City, which fell back to third place on Saturday and Sunday. Now, looking at a five-day jaunt from Thursday to Monday, if Shrek Forever After can eclipse Sex by about $3 million on Memorial Day, it will not only win the holiday weekend, but the extended frame, too. The key is consistency, and while Sex has lost money every successive day, Shrek built on Thursday and Friday with a $17 million Saturday. Even its Sunday estimate - around $15 million - is pretty healthy, especially in comparison to what's around it. With the exception of Thursday - which counts, of course; it's just not an A/B comparison - Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time has played Sex and the City fairly even, too. It got beat on Friday, but won the battle on Saturday and Sunday, and based on its daily holds, ought to win Monday, as well. Still, it's on pace for maybe a $35 million weekend, which is not very good. The Friday - Monday numbers heavily favor Shrek, which may hit $50 million by the end of Memorial Day; I expect Prince of Persia and Sex and the City to be within a couple million dollars of each other over that duration, but I expected that on Thursday, too...just with more money. For Sex the question is: Did it do better than the first movie. And the answer is no. In five days, it's not going to be able to match what the original spin-off made in three. In older movie news, Iron Man 2 is about two weeks away from $300 million. The first movie in the series did it in 48 days, and this one will probably get there in about 35. Not much difference at all, and an even better run for the 2008 film after the opening weekend. Here's a surprise, though: Date Night will make $100 million. It's already at $94 million, and in about three more weeks, it should be there as a little bit of business is still filtering in for it. And Shutter Island, still kicking in a few theaters, has passed The Departed in global box office to become Martin Scorsese's all-time biggest hit. The Top Five:
1 - Shrek ($43.3 million)
2 - Sex and the City ($32.1 million)
3 - Prince of Persia ($30.1 million)
4 - Iron Man 2 ($16 million)
5 - Robin Hood ($10.3 million)