Box Office: 'Exodus' Opens at No. 1, Dethrones 'Mockingjay - Part 1'

The holidays are apparently the time for Biblical-themed films, as evidenced by the success of this weekend's newest offering.

Exodus: Gods and Kings earned the No. 1 spot at the weekend box office with $24.5 million, finally dethroning The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1 after three weeks in the top spot.

However, while the movie did just enough to take No. 1, it didn't exactly have the kind of opening that 20th Century Fox and Chernin Entertainment were hoping for. Exodus cost a whopping $140 million to make, which suddenly makes this sub-$30 million opening look a whole lot weaker than it might have looked otherwise. What makes this substantially worse is that Exodus will be facing huge competition in the coming weeks. There's Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb to occupy people looking for an adventurous romp, Disney's Into the Woods to satisfy those looking for a spectacle, and for those looking for epic action? Well, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies releases this week, biting a huge chunk out of the potential audience for Exodus. Basically, Fox picked a lousy time to release this movie if their goal was to recoup their $140 million investment.

Of course, it's not impossible for the film to accomplish this when international grosses are added into the totals. This week alone, Exodus: Gods and Kings grossed $43.3 million from foreign markets, which suggests this film could have legs over the course of the holiday season. If nothing else, it wouldn't be the only blockbuster to have a longer-than-average shelf life.

Case in point, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 is holding steady in its fourth week of release. Although the film fell to No. 2, it only declined 40% in overall ticket sales, raking in $13.2 million for a North American gross of $277.4 million. The sequel has now earned $611.4 million worldwide. Meanwhile, Penguins of Madagascar was just successful enough to keep Chris Rock out of the Top 3, as the animated film earned $7.3 million versus the $7.2 million debut for Rock's Top Five. Speaking of top five, this weekend's was rounded out by Disney's Big Hero 6, which earned $6.5 million for fifth place. Its domestic total is now hovering at $185.3 million, while its worldwide tally is up to $253.5 million in its firth month of release.

Check out the full Top 10 at the weekend box office below, and let us know what you saw, what you want to see, and what you're looking forward to in the comments!

1. Exodus: Gods and Kings ($24.5 million)
2. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 ($13.2 million)
3. Penguins of Madagascar ($7.3 million)
4. Top Five ($7.2 million)
5. Big Hero 6 ($6.5 million)
6. Interstellar ($5.5 million)
7. Horrible Bosses 2 ($4.6 million)
8. Dumb and Dumber To ($2.8 million)
9. The Theory of Everything ($2.5 million)
10. Wild ($1.5 million)

Via: The Hollywood Reporter / Box Office Mojo

Credit: 20th Century Fox / Chernin Entertainment