LOS ANGELES — “Annabelle” couldn’t scare off “Gone Girl” at the weekend box office.
The Fox thriller starring Ben Affleck as a man whose wife goes missing overcame the Warner Bros. possessed-doll horror movie with a $38 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday.
Additional Images
Both films join the recently released “The Maze Runner” and “The Equalizer” in crossing the $30 million mark this fall, a typically low-earning season at the box office.
“It was virtually a photo finish,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for box-office tracker Rentrak. “These two movies couldn’t be more different. It shows how if the marketplace presents a diversity of product, audiences will come out. … It’s been a great post-summer run.”
“Gone Girl” is based on the best-selling novel by Gillian Flynn and was directed by “The Social Network” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” filmmaker David Fincher. The film earned an additional $24.6 million internationally.
“I think David Fincher made a very provocative, thought-provoking film,” said Chris Aronson, head of distribution for Fox. “I think there was this crescendo of publicity and social-media chatter that made ‘Gone Girl’ into a zeitgeist-y movie that you have to see to be part of the conversation.”
“Annabelle” debuted closely behind “Gone Girl” with $37.2 million. The movie stars Ward Horton and Annabelle Wallis as new parents who bring the creepy porcelain plaything seen in last year’s haunted house horror “The Conjuring” into their home.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
