Moviegoers were not in the mood to celebrate 2012 early this weekend or go to any movies at all as New Year's Eve [NYEVE] led the slowest weekend box office since September 2008. The star-studded romantic comedy tallied just $13.7 million from an audience that was 70% female.
The Sitter [SITER] opened in second place at an estimated $10.0 million. The R-rated comedy attracted an older crowd at 63% over the age of 25.
After a three week reign, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 [TWLI4] stepped down to third with $7.9 million. The penultimate sequel has grossed $259.6 million.
The Muppets [MUPET] placed fourth with $7.1 million to bring its cumulative total to $65.8 million.
In its first weekend of wide expansion, The Descendants [DSCND] took in $4.4 million for seventh overall.
| Rank | TITLE | F-S-S | TOTAL |
| 1 | NEW YEAR'S EVE | $13,705,000 | $13,705,000 |
| 2 | THE SITTER | $10,000,000 | $10,000,000 |
| 3 | THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN PT. 1 | $7,900,000 | $259,483,267 |
| 4 | THE MUPPETS | $7,100,000 | $65,800,000 |
| 5 | ARTHUR CHRISTMAS | $6,600,000 | $33,490,000 |
| 6 | HUGO | $6,125,000 | $33,489,000 |
| 7 | THE DESCENDANTS | $4,385,000 | $23,635,423 |
| 8 | HAPPY FEET TWO | $3,750,000 | $56,850,000 |
| 9 | JACK AND JILL | $3,200,000 | $68,647,000 |
| 10 | IMMORTALS | $2,442,000 | $79,849,505 |
| 11 | TOWER HEIST | $2,379,350 | $74,142,880 |
| 12 | PUSS IN BOOTS | $1,655,000 | $141,900,000 |
Source: Exhibitor Relations Co.
Tag(s): NYEVE, SITER, TWLI4, MUPET, DSCND