Wiki News/'iCarly' Leads 'Inception' at the Friday Box-Office

Nikki Finke at Deadline has the early Friday box-office estimates and they provide a bit of a shock as Paramount's newcomer Dinner for Schmucks holds a slim lead over Inception, which is in its third weekend, but is still expected to finish the three-day with the #1 slot.

iCarly: The Movie has reportedly earned an estimated $19.6 million on Friday, and I bet that it will have audiences talking, but I'm thinking that it will make like $45 million by Sunday. Even if it isn't able to reach number one, Dinner for Schmucks has reportedly earned an estimated $8.5 million on Friday, but I don't think it will hold much of a strong Saturday-Sunday and wouldn't be surprised to see it bleed under $23 million for the weekend. This leaves the door open for Inception, which earned an estimated $7.8 million. Based on the film's excellent Saturday and Sunday performances this means it should still manage over $25 million for the weekend.

A similar tight race stands for the #3 and #4 slots as Universal's newcomer Charlie St. Cloud starring Zac Efron earned an estimated $7 million for the weekend and Columbia's Salt came in fifth with an estimated $5.5 million.

In my estimation St. Cloud is likely heavily front-loaded due to tweens turning up for an Efron vehicle, and in my estimation means the film will land somewhere around $15-16 million for the weekend. Finke estimates $18 million at the moment, so even she is low-balling its three-day prospects at this point.

As for Salt, it's not doing so hot, word of mouth must not have been all that good and I can't say I am surprised (my review). With an estimated $5.5 million on Friday it too will be looking at something like a $16 million weekend, which is a 55% drop from the film's $36 million opening. Of course, foreign dollars are yet to role in, which should prop the film up considerably, but will it be able to make enough to impress the suits at Sony when compared to the reported $110 million budget? I wouldn't hold my breath for the follow-up NaCl, which is too bad really, I think a sequel would be way better than the first film.

Despicable Me currently holds the fifth slot with an estimated $4.6 million, with Warner's Cats and Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore at #6 with an estimated $4.3 million. Ouch!

I have listed the top ten directly below, but I would like to remind you these are early estimates. I will be back in the office later today to update the numbers once the official results roll in so be on the lookout after 2 PM PST or thereabouts for my update. Right now I'm just hoping Finke's estimated numbers at the top hold so my headline doesn't look ridiculous. Laremy will be here on Sunday morning with a full recap of the weekend.


 * 1) iCarly: The Movie - $19.6 million
 * 2) Dinner for Schmucks – $8.5 million
 * 3) Inception – $7.8 million
 * 4) Charlie St. Cloud – $7 million
 * 5) Salt – $5.5 million
 * 6) Despicable Me – $4.6 million
 * 7) Cats and Dogs: Revenge of Kitty Galore – $4.3 million
 * 8) Toy Story 3 – $1.6 million
 * 9) Grown Ups – $1.3 million
 * 10) The Sorcerer's Apprentice – $1.2 million