Is Will Smith still a major box-office name?
Focus topped the weekend box-office despite falling a little short of expectations. The Will Smith action-comedy flick took $19.1 million to snatch the No.1 spot away from Fifty Shades of Grey though analysts had predicted the move would earn between $21 million to $23 million.
Will Smith [L] and Margot Robbie [R] in Focus
It led to some debate that Smith's star power was beginning to wane, though Focus received mainly positive reviews and represents a far greater success story than After Earth - the actor's last movie considered one of the worst movie of all time. Focus cost just $50.1 million to produce and should recoup that figure once it expands abroad.
"He's [Smith] terrific in this film," said Jeff Goldstein, distribution executive vice president at Warner Bros. "But to compare a film like this to one of [Smith's] tentpole films is unfair. He picked a project that was always slated to be a mid-range to low-range budget and the results are consistent with that."
"It's all about the snow and the freezing cold," said Goldstein. "If we had not been beat up by inclement weather, we would have hit $20 million-plus."
More: Will Smith returns to form with energetic Focus
In second place, Kingsman: The Secret Service took $11.7 million to take its overall total to $85.7 million while Fifty Shades had to settle for fourth place with $10.9 million for an overall $147.8 million haul. Third place went to The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water which earned $11.2m million.
Further down the list, Oscar-winner Birdman took $1.9 million while Julianne Moore's Oscar win for Best Actress helped Still Alice take $2.7 million after doubling its screen count to 1,318.
"This is the calm before the storm," said Phil Contrino, vice president and chief analyst at BoxOffice.com. "People were worried about the first quarter, but for it to shatter expectations like it has means we're in for good numbers this year."
Dramas exploring the nature of death and the true meaning of life are always in...
Love, time and death connect every single human being on earth, we long for love,...
DC Comics' villains team up for an overcrowded action movie that never quite finds its...
The Suicide Squad was formed by Amanda Waller, the head of Belle Reve Penitentiary and...
When there's nowhere left to turn, the bad guys might just turn out to be...
Dr. Bennet Omalu is a pathologist who loves his job and, in many ways, the...
Is it really wise to trust your most dangerous sworn enemies? Sometimes you have little...
A very odd blend of caper action, dark drama and romantic comedy, this slickly made...
While sitting at the bar of a hotel lobby one night, a man catches a...
A solid cast bodes well for this unnecessary remake of the 1982 movie (based on...
Nicky Spurgeon is a genius when it comes to his work as a con man...
The fact that this magical romance has been retitled A New York Winter's Tale in...
Peter Lake is a wanted burglar in a desperate struggle to escape an old gangster...
Cypher Raige is a renowned military general who finds himself and his frightened 13-year-old son...