'Titans' wins weekend boxoffice

1:02 AM PDT 10/14/2010 by Carl DiOrio, AP

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Updated numbers show Warner Bros. hit toppling 'Date Night'

When all the dust had settled, it was Warner Bros.' action fantasy "Clash of the Titans" winning the weekend's clash of movie genres in a boxoffice battle with Fox's action comedy "Date Night."

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Preliminary studio estimates on Sunday had showed the Fox opener squeaking past the 3D holdover for No. 1 in domestic rankings. But updated numbers showed "Titans" repeating atop the boxoffice heap in its sophomore session.

Monday morning's final official data -- or "actuals," in industry argot -- showed "Titans" topped the weekend with $26.6 million. That gave the Sam Worthington starrer a $110.2 million cume.

"Date Night" bowed in the No. 2 position, as things turned out, with a weekend tally of $25.2 million. The pic played a bit more softly on Sunday than anticipated, though execs were pleased that the well-reviewed pic still bowed in line with pre-release projections.

DreamWorks Animation's 3D animated adventure "How to Train Your Dragon" remained the session's bronze medalist with final data giving the Paramount-distributed pic $24.9 million on the frame and a $133.4 million cume.

For "Date," starring Tina Fey and Steve Carell in a tale about a married couple's on-the-town misadventures, the next mission will be to maintain good market traction during the next couple of weeks. Adult-skewing pics generally are expected to hold up decently, despite the industry's increased emphasis these days on opening weekends.

Its adult orientation might have worked against "Date" on Sunday, when it registered 49% less coin than the previous day. High TV viewership for the conclusion of the Masters golf tournament that afternoon peeled prospective moviegoers away from most adult-targeting movies, Fox executives believe.

Meanwhile, "Titans" pleasantly surprised industryites during its second frame as the pic's 56% drop from its opening weekend represented a more modest decline than anticipated.

"Dragon" is proving outstandingly leggy, dropping only 14% during its third session.