Dec. 22, 2013 3:51 p.m. ET
NEW YORK—On a busy pre-Christmas weekend at the box office, "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" held off a very different sequel, "Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues."
Peter Jackson's "Hobbit" sequel took in $31.5 million in its second weekend of release for Time Warner Inc. TWX +0.65% Time Warner Inc. U.S.: NYSE $68.34 +0.44 +0.65% Dec. 20, 2013 4:02 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 7.21M AFTER HOURS $68.34 0.00 0.00% Dec. 20, 2013 4:35 pm Volume (Delayed 15m): 208,707 P/E Ratio 16.55 Market Cap $61.83 Billion Dividend Yield 1.68% Rev. per Employee $864,529 12/19/13 Corporate Suite vs. Industry L... 12/15/13 'The Hobbit: The Desolation of... 12/11/13 Weinsteins Sue Warner Bros. Ov... More quote details and news » 's Warner Bros., according to studio estimates Sunday. That topped Will Ferrell's "Anchorman" sequel, which nevertheless opened strongly in second place. The Paramount Pictures comedy made $26.8 million over the three-day weekend and $40 million since opening Tuesday night.
The much-marketed "Anchorman 2" actually outperformed "The Hobbit" (which has now passed $300 million world-wide) on Friday, but failed to best it over Saturday and Sunday. But the $50 million comedy, which Viacom Inc. VIA -0.04% Viacom Inc. Cl A U.S.: Nasdaq $84.29 -0.03 -0.04% Dec. 20, 2013 4:00 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 26,609 AFTER HOURS $84.29 0.00 0.00% Dec. 20, 2013 4:27 pm Volume (Delayed 15m): 5,178 P/E Ratio 16.99 Market Cap $37.54 Billion Dividend Yield 1.42% Rev. per Employee $1,379,400 10/07/13 Cineplex Bundles Movie Ticket ... More quote details and news » 's Paramount initially turned down, also suggested it will be more popular abroad than most comedies. It made $13.4 million in six international markets.
The 2004 original opened with $28.4 million, but only grossed $5.3 million internationally.
"'Anchorman [2]' will have a much larger footprint internationally than the last 'Anchorman' did," said Don Harris, head of domestic distribution for Paramount. "Will Ferrell has done a really good job of turning this character into something that travels around the world."
David O. Russell's fictionalization of the 1970s Abscam investigation "American Hustle" earned a robust $19.1 million in its first week of nationwide expansion. The film from Sony Corp.'s 6758.TO +0.38% Sony Corp. Japan: Tokyo ¥1827 +7 +0.38% Dec. 20, 2013 3:00 pm Volume : 11.08M P/E Ratio 27.39 Market Cap ¥1897.61 Billion Dividend Yield 1.37% Rev. per Employee ¥49,003,500 12/16/13 Reaping Profits From Soundtrac... 12/15/13 Getting the '70s Look for 'Ame... 12/04/13 Sony Has New Battle Plan in Co... More quote details and news » Sony Pictures, starring Christian Bale, Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence, got a boost from its seven Golden Globes nominations.
"It's such a crowd-pleaser as well as a critical hit," said Sony's distribution head Rory Bruer. "We have so much more to look forward to, including Christmas Day."
The pre-Christmas weekend is a sought-after release date, one that usually offers films especially good legs at the box office as moviegoers flood theaters over the coming weeks. The weekend box office was up nearly 30% over the same weekend last year.
But this year's holiday frame will be particularly competitive. The crowded field of movie openings Wednesday includes Martin Scorsese's "The Wolf of Wall Street," Ben Stiller's "The Life of Walter Mitty," the Robert De Niro and Sylvester Stallone comedy "Grudge Match," the Justin Bieber documentary "Justin Bieber's Believe" and Keanu Reeves' "47 Ronin."
"It is going to be one heck of a crowded Christmas Day at the movie theater," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for box-office tracker Rentrak. "This is setting up to be perhaps one of the biggest Christmas Days ever."
One obvious casualty from the many options at the multiplexes was Twentieth Century Fox's "Walking With Dinosaurs," a 3-D attraction that hoped to draw moviegoers with digital dinosaurs. Made for $85 million, it fell flat with just $7.3 million over the weekend.
The family market has instead been cornered by Walt Disney Co. DIS -0.78% Walt Disney Co. U.S.: NYSE $72.40 -0.57 -0.78% Dec. 20, 2013 4:00 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 12.71M AFTER HOURS $72.60 +0.20 +0.28% Dec. 20, 2013 7:58 pm Volume (Delayed 15m): 278,908 P/E Ratio 21.17 Market Cap $127.23 Billion Dividend Yield 1.19% Rev. per Employee $257,377 12/19/13 Katie Couric's Talk Show to En... 12/16/13 IPO This Week for Sergio Leone... 12/16/13 Weinstein Co., Miramax Reunite... More quote details and news » 's animated "Frozen," which added $19.2 million over the weekend. In five weeks of release, it has made $344 million world-wide.
The other Oscar-hopeful that went wide over the weekend was Disney's making-of "Mary Poppins" tale "Saving Mr. Banks." The film, starring Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks, made $9.3 million.
Spike Jonze's acclaimed futuristic romance "Her," starring Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlet Johansson, opened in limited release. It took in $361,000 over five days in three cities, good for a $60,000 screen average.
Despite some high-profile summer bombs, the 2013 box office is on track to narrowly surpass last year's record box office of $10.8 billion, with one weekend to go in the year.
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