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This weekend was filled with mix emotions of anger, hatred, and injustice as the much talk about Trayvon Martin case reached its verdict. The timing of other projects profited well from it Fruitvale film about the injustice murder of Oscar Grant released this weekend as well to impressive numbers in its five theater limited release.
PEOPLE WERE PISSED AND OFFENDED OVER THE TRAYVON MARTIN VERDICT:
Fla. – Following nearly three weeks of testimony, a jury of six women in the George Zimmerman trial has found the former neighborhood watch volunteer not guilty of second-degree murder.
He was also found not guilty of the lesser offense of manslaughter, which the jury also weighed.
The jury deliberated until late Saturday night after Zimmerman’s defense wrapped up closing statements and the prosecution concluded rebuttal arguments Friday. Zimmerman, 29, was charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of Florida teen Trayvon Martin during an altercation last year in a Sanford, Fla. gated community. Zimmerman pleaded not guilty, claiming he shot the teen in self-defense.
Speaking to Zimmerman after the verdict, Circuit Judge Debra Nelson said, “You have no further business with this court.”
This pitch happened this week. At the Tampa Bay Rays/Houston Astros game, Carly Rae Jepsen threw out the ceremonial first pitch at Tropicana Field.
WEEKEND BOX OFFICE! FRUITVALE LEAVES THE STATION!
Once again Despicable Me 2 was upfront at the No.1 position, with Grown Ups 2 and Pacific Rim battling out for the No. 2 and 3 slots, with Grown Ups doing well with $42 million, and Rim coming in third with a rather so-so $38 million.
Warners had been battling media reports for the past two weeks that Rim wasn’t tracking especially well, with an opening predicted around $35 million which is not great considering the film’s price tag reportedly around $180+ million ; and it looks like those rumors weren’t that far off at all. The film did not expand far beyond Guillermo del Toro’s fanboy base.
But the big news is the smallest film of the new releases this weekend, Fruitvale Station, which opened in 7 theaters to an incredible $53,000 per screen, for a total of $377,000 , far and away the biggest per screen opening for any film, not only this week, but in months. The film will continue to open in more cities as the weeks ago by and we’ll be keeping tabs on it.
