"Knowing" you're on top (weekend box-office estimates)

The weekend’s top-five movies (estimated totals courtesy of Box Office Mojo; final figures will be available Monday afternoon):

1. Knowing
$28.4 million
2. I Love You, Man
$18 million
3. Duplicity
$14.4 million
4. Race to Witch Mountain
$13 million
5. Watchmen
$6.7 million

The science-fiction thriller “Knowing” was Nicolas Cage’s biggest opening since “Ghost Rider” (2007). The film was on significantly more screens that its competitors, and it is not expected to have longer than a one-week run on top of the box office. (The animated feature “Monsters vs. Aliens” open this upcoming weekend.)

Still, the first-week grosses for “I Love You, Man” and “Duplicity” were slightly disappointing, especially considering the star power of the latter movie.

And meanwhile, the R-rated comic book adaptation “Watchmen” had another steep drop off. The movie will certainly break the $100 million mark, but probably won’t recoup its $150 million production budget in its theatrical run.