Latest Celebrity News | Celebrity Gossip | Entertainment News

When it comes to weekend numbers, never bet against an animated film. Even if the tracking is s0-so, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t an audience hungry for the picture. Witness this weekend.

DreamWorks animated titles that aren’t Shrek tend to to open to around $60 Million, like Kung Fu Panda or Monsters Vs. Aliens. Madagascar 3 did a little less than Madagascar 2, but its opening suggests a $200 Million cume, which â€" with international numbers â€" means that Dreamworks may be working on a fourth entry.

Prometheus had the better per screen, though it’s hard to say if the film could have done better if it were on more screens. We’re in a climate where R rated pictures rarely get the blockbuster treatment in summer, so these numbers are good, but the big thing now is that neither it or Madagascar are going to make a profit based on their domestic numbers. In fact, only one film this summer so far will make a profit based on its America-only gross. The best possible outcome from Prometheus is that it does four times its opening, which would put it at $200 domestic. But more than likely it taps out in the $160-$170 range. But it’s already made $90 million internationally, so it’s on a path to success, much as Madagascar has already made $75 abroad.

And Snow White has yet to make money, even though Universal is moving forward with a sequel. The film didn’t cross $100 Million in its first ten days, but it’s still doing well enough to be near a nine digit total. It will probably stop around $150 Million, but that’s not bad, and it will likely be saved by international. Men in Black III is on track for a similar fate to $150 (maybe a pinch more), though it’s closing in on a half a billion worldwide. Which makes it come close to success, though it all depends on how much it really cost. The studio’s saying $225, but there are others who claim much higher.

The Avengers is still the winner of the summer, and it should get to $600 Million before it wraps up. But for the picture, there’s no records left it could break, other than Titanic‘s gross in 1997. Moonrise Kingdom is starting to expand and it could be the Midnight in Paris of this summer. Out of the top ten, The Hunger Games crossed the $400 Million dollar mark. Next weekend is smaller, but then box office starts heating up with some of the biggest risks of the summer.

Reality Check: I went higher on Prometheus on lower on Madagascar 3. Never under-estimate kids films. I did, and that’s that. I didn’t think audiences really fell for these Madagascar movies, but the absences of kids films to this point in the summer probably gave the movie a bounce.

What did you see this weekend?

I'm reading: Box Office Roundup: ‘Madagascar 3′ Moves It to the Top Spot