| 'New Moon' midnight showings earn record $26.3 million |
| Updated 11/20/2009 6:38 PM ET |
NEW YORK (AP) — The Twilight Saga: New Moon has set a box-office record for midnight screenings.
Summit Entertainment estimated Friday that it earned $26.3 million after opening early in the morning.
VIDEO: Hanging out after midnight with 'Twilight' fans GALLERY: Who's who in the 'New Moon' universe TRAILER: Once more into the night 'Twilight' ANIMAL RAGE: These snarly dudes dazzle as werewolvesThat would topple the previous midnight record, held by Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. It earned $22.2 million this year. The Dark Knight from 2008 is third with $18.5 million.
New Moon is the second installment of the popular Twilight series. It opened at midnight in 3,514 theaters with a per-theater average of $7,476.
Paul Dergarabedian is a box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. He says the midnight start "portends an opening weekend that could be one of the biggest of the year. "
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
| Posted 11/20/2009 3:00 PM ET | |
| Updated 11/20/2009 6:38 PM ET | |
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