Jackass Number Two Is Number One

The Stateside box office got a swift kick in the unmentionables this weekend as the Jackass team returned and stormed cinemas to take top place. With $28.1 million, Jackass Number Two had a more successful opening than the 2002 original and showed that there’s clearly still an audience for the likes of Steve-O and Wee Man risking their lives against snakes, bulls and high velocity projectiles.

A man who’s also made a career out of high-risk activity is Jet Li, and his latest martial arts epic – Fearless – arrived in second place with $10.5 million. Third went to one of the week’s success stories, as Dwayne Johnson’s Gridiron Gang – a true-life tale of a prison officer trying to sort out gang kids by recruiting them to an American Football team – continued to strike a chord with US audiences, landing in third for its second week. With $9.7 million this weekend, that means it’s up to $27 million in 10 days.

Sixth place was The Black Dahlia, and Brian De Palma’s dark noir is falling fast, grabbing just $4.4 million for the weekend for a paltry current total of $17.2 million. Not exactly thrilling figures for a true-crime thriller. But that’s healthier than All The King’s Men, written and directed by Steven Zaillian. After a year on the shelf and numerous edits following unsuccessful test screenings, the film was finally buried by mixed word of mouth and low interest. It grossed just $3.8 million in seventh.

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