Denzel Washington thriller “Safe House” rose to the No. 1 spot at movie box offices through Sunday, narrowly leading love story “The Vow” over a long holiday weekend in the United States. “Safe House” took in $24.0 million at North American (U.S. and Canadian) theaters from Friday through Sunday, taking the top slot after a second-place finish when the film debuted a week earlier. The movie earned an average of $7,680 from 3,121 theaters, according to studio estimates.
Distributor Universal Pictures projected “Safe House” would gross $28.5 million domestically through Monday, the U.S. Presidents Day holiday. Also on Monday, the film’s global sales to date were expected to cross $100 million. The movie stars Washington as a fugitive on the run with a rookie CIA operative played by Ryan Reynolds. Privately held Relativity Media helped finance the film. Close behind “Safe House” was last weekend’s winner, “The Vow,” with $23.6 million domestically from Friday through Sunday, or an average of $7,978 at 2,958 locations.—Agencies
