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One of the BOP editors loves Johnny Knoxville, so she'll call this a big, big win.

Kim Hollis: Sign of the apocalypse #1: Jackass 3D earned $50.4 million in its opening weekend. Are you surprised that 3D groin shots are this appealing to people?

Josh Spiegel: Maybe, but only just a little. The first film in the franchise opened with $22 million, and the second opened with nearly $30 million. By that alone, we should have figured an equally solid opening, if not higher. Add 3D technology to gross-out stunts, something that managed to sway lots of people, and heavy marketing for a few months, and this result makes sense. I probably wouldn't have figured a number higher than $40 million, but for the right people, this felt like something close to a summer-movie event.





Tom Houseman: This is why studios are investing in 3D technology. Not only would this movie not have done as well if it weren't for the 3D, I doubt it would have done as well as either of the first two films. I feel like the Jackass schtick is getting old, especially considering that you can probably find gags just as outrageous on YouTube. But the enticement of seeing these outrageous stunts in 3D was too much to resist, and clearly its target audience flocked to get in. The real question is what the legs will look like for this one. I wouldn't be surprised if it finished under $120 million.

Matthew Huntley: I'm definitely surprised. For one thing, I thought Red had a lot more buzz going into the weekend than Jackass and would have easily picked the former to take the crown (the latter just didn't seem to have the same enthusiasm as its predecessors). Clearly, this wasn't the case.

Secondly, we all assumed the 3D craze was dying down and even the most ardent Jackass fans wouldn't be swayed to pay the extra surcharges just because "3D" was in the title, but the format was likely a major selling point. Perhaps this is evidence that 3D can still be utilized when it's focused and actually serves a visual purpose (and yes, I can imagine 3D groin shots do serve a purpose in a comedy such as Jackass). Whatever legs it has from here on out is mostly irrelevant because of its moderate $20 million budget, but this opening is good news not only for Paramount, but the industry as a whole.

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