WEEKEND BOX OFFICE

Fanboys didn't turn out in the droves needed to push Sucker Punch, Zack Snyder's first attempt at original material, into the top spot at the box office this weekend. Instead, the family-friendly sequel Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2: Rodrick Rules proved surprisingly strong and handily beat the competition.

At a reported production cost of only $21 million, Fox's Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2: Rodrick Rules looks to be already in the black and given that families are less likely to see a movie on opening weekend the numbers should hold strong as more and more kids get their spring breaks over the next couple of weeks. Also, apparently the actor playing Rodrick, Devon Bostick, is piquing the interest of teen girls helping to get them into the theater as well.

Unfortunately for Sucker Punch, the poor grosses do not bode well. Its target audience is known for seeing movies on opening weekends and this less-than-stellar showing, combined with its scathingly bad reviews, means Warner Bros. will have a hard time recouping their investment which is said to be anywhere between $85 million to $100 million plus. Of course, this doesn't include the marketing expenses either. Looks like Zack Snyder will have to double-down on his upcoming Superman remake if he wants to retain his golden boy status at the studio.

There wasn't much else of note this weekend. Mars Needs Moms continues to bomb, clinging to the bottom spot with a measly $2.5 million. On the other hand, The Lincoln Lawyer is proving to have legs with its nearly $11 million take giving it the smallest week-to-week drop (-17%). Ditto for Limitless which also remained strong with only a 19% drop from last week.