Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug became number 1 at the weekend box office with $73.7 million, beating last weekend’s box office ruler Disney’s animated fable Frozen.
Despite its first place position, The Desolation of Smaug fell short of topping its prequel’s debut. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, which opened this same weekend last year, gained $84.6 million. It earned $131.2 million in international sales.
“We had an excellent weekend,” said Dan Fellman, president of domestic distribution at Warner Bros. “Of course, it could have been a little better, but the weather back East was really tough last night and probably took a couple million dollars out of my pocket. But our box office will survive. We are right on target to do very similar numbers to the last ‘Hobbit,’ which grossed a $1 billion worldwide (overall).”
In the film, the dwarves, along with Bilbo Baggins and Gandalf the Grey, continue their quest to reclaim Erebor, their homeland, from Smaug. Bilbo Baggins is in possession of a mysterious and magical ring.
