\'Obama\'s America\' Is a Box-Office Surprise

August 26, 2012, 12:40 pm

By BROOKS BARNES

The movie capital didn't see this coming: The political documentary “2016: Obama's America,” a cinematic extension of the best-selling book “The Roots of Obama's Rage,” beat two new Hollywood releases at the weekend box office and came very close to passing a third. “Obama's America,” released by Rocky Mountain Pictures, took in an estimated $6.2 million at North American theaters, for a total of $9.1 million since opening in limited release last month. Two new movies - “Hit and Run” (Open Road Films) and “The Apparition” (Warner Brothers) - flopped, taking in less than $4.7 million each. Another new release, “Premium Rush” (Sony), managed to take in only $6.3 million.

Still, “Ob ama's America” couldn't crack the top five, which were all holdovers. “The Expendables 2” (Lionsgate) was No. 1, taking in about $13.5 million for a two-week total of $52.3 million, according to Hollywood.com, which compiles box-office data. Universal's “Bourne Legacy” was second, selling about $9.3 million in tickets, for a three-week-total of $85.5 million. “ParaNorman” (Focus Features) was a third, taking in about $8.5 million and lifting its two-week total to $28.3 million. Fourth place went to “The Campaign” (Warner), which sold about $7.4 million in tickets, for a three-week total of $64.5 million. And Warner's “Dark Knight Rises” was fifth, with Batman taking in another $7.2 million for a six-week total of about $422.2 million.