‘The Fighter’ Scores a Knockout

23 Mar, 2011 By: Thomas K. Arnold

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Paramount Home Entertainment has scored a rare triple play on the national home video charts for the week ended March 20, as the Oscar-winning drama The Fighter debuted at No. 1 on all three charts.

The drama, which grossed $93.4 million in theaters, snagged supporting actor wins for Christian Bale and Melissa Leo. The film tells the story of boxer “Irish” Micky Ward’s Rocky-like rise.

The Fighter, which generated 40% of its unit sales from Blu-ray Disc, outsold its closest competitor, Universal’s Barbie: A Fairy Secret, by a 2-to-1 margin on the Nielsen VideoScan First Alert sales chart. The latest direct-to-video Barbie feature debuted at No. 2, followed by Warner’s Hereafter ($32.7 million box office) at No. 3 and the Lionsgate comedy The Switch ($27.8 million) at No. 4.

Paramount/DreamWorks’ Megamind continued to see strong sales demand, slipping from No. 3 to No. 5 its fourth week in stores, while Paramount’s Jackass 3, the previous week’s top seller, slipped to No. 6.

On the Blu-ray Disc sales chart, The Fighter bumped Walt Disney’s Bambi out of the No. 1 spot it had held for two weeks, to No. 2. Hereafter debuted at No. 3, while The Switch bowed at No. 7, behind Jackass 3 (No. 4), Megamind (No. 5) and Anchor Bay's The Walking Dead: The Complete First Season (No. 6). Barbie: A Fairy Secret isn’t available on Blu-ray Disc.

The Fighter also bowed at No. 1 on Home Media Magazine’s rental chart, with The Switch debuting at No. 2. Hereafter debuted at No. 19, outside the top spots because, as a Warner title, it is not available at Netflix or Redbox until 28 days after street date.

The Lionsgate thriller The Next Three Days, the previous week’s top rental, slipped to No. 3, while 20th Century Fox’s Unstoppable shot up to No. 4 now that its 28-delay from Netflix and Redbox is over.

 

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