'The Smurfs' Overtakes 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' on Home Entertainment Charts

Sony Pictures’ The Smurfs, the first in a trilogy of CGI films based on the 1980s cartoon series, debuted at No. 1 on the national home video sales charts for the week ending Dec. 4, bumping Warner Home Video’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 to the No. 2 spot after three weeks at No. 1.

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The sales triumph of The Smurfs on not just the Nielsen VideoScan First Alert chart, which tracks overall disc sales, but also on Nielsen’s dedicated Blu-ray Disc sales chart, suggests the high-definition disc format is firmly in the mainstream. Nielsen data shows that the Blu-ray Disc version accounted for 42 percent of total unit sales, a significant percentage given the family market at which The Smurfs – which grossed $142.3 million in U.S. theaters -- is aimed.

As holiday shoppers continue to look for gifts, other high-profile family titles and comedies released in recent weeks dominate the top of the sales charts, including Universal Studios’ Bridesmaids, which remains perched at No. 3 nearly three months after its initial release, and Walt Disney Studio’s Cars 2 and The Lion King, which finished the week at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.

After The Smurfs, the top-ranking new release was Sony Pictures’ Friends With Benefits, which bowed at No. 6 – just on notch ahead of Warner’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 1, which has been in stores for 34 weeks.

On Home Media Magazine’s video rental chart for the week, Paramount’s Super 8 was No. 1 for the second week, followed at No. 2 by the Warner comedy Crazy, Stupid, Love, which has just come off its 28-day holdback from Netflix and Redbox.

Three new releases round out the top 5: Sony Pictures’ 30 Minutes or Less at No. 3 and Friends With Benefits at No. 4, and Anchor Bay’s Our Idiot Brother at No. 5.