Hobbit Precious in $84.8M Debut

But not quite as precious as experts predicted
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 16, 2012 12:42 PM CST
Hobbit Precious in $84.8M Debut
"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" proved preciousssss at the box office.   (AP Photo/Warner Bros., File)

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey sailed through its first weekend with an $84.8 million haul, shattering the previous record for December but rather underperforming expectations that had pegged the $250 million blockbuster at somewhere between $120 million and $140 million. The good news: Those who did turn out loved the Lord of the Rings prequel, giving it an average CinemaScore of A and increasing the odds of a word-of-mouth surge, reports the LA Times. Rounding out the top five were Rise of the Guardians ($7.4 million), Lincoln ($7.2 million), Skyfall ($7 million), and Life of Pi ($5.4 million).

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