On a long weekend where Valentine's Day fell on Sunday, the perfectly timed romantic comedy Valentine's Day [VSDAY] bloomed an estimated $66.855 million to set a new record for the 4-day President's Day weekend. The previous high of $52.0 million was held by 2007's Ghost Rider. Warner Bros. put together an all-star ensemble cast that proved irresistable to couples and female moviegoers looking for love.
Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief [PJALT] debuted in second place with $38.75 million over the long weekend. Adapted from a popular kids book series, the fantasy film connected with more and moviegoers than anticipated from pre-release buzz.
Of the three new releases, The Wolfman [WOLFM] finished third best with a respectable $36.5 million over the holiday weekend. However, the horror remake will need phenomenal word of mouth to make back its $150 million production cost.
Avatar [HWAVA] held strong in fourth place, securing another $30 million to bring its record sum to over $667 million. The 3D epic declined just 3% in its ninth weekend when comparing the 3-day portion of the weekend.
Last weekend's top film, Dear John [DEARJ] finished fifth with $18.8 million over the 4-day weekend. The romance dipped 47% in the 3-day portion of its second weekend.
| Rank | TITLE | F-S-S-M | TOTAL |
| 1 | VALENTINE'S DAY | $66,855,000 | $66,855,000 |
| 2 | PERCY JACKSON & THE OLYMPIANS: THE LIGHTENING THIEF | $38,750,000 | $38,750,000 |
| 3 | THE WOLFMAN | $36,489,150 | $36,489,150 |
| 4 | AVATAR | $30,000,000 | $667,605,653 |
| 5 | DEAR JOHN | $18,800,000 | $56,678,000 |
| 6 | THE TOOTH FAIRY | $7,700,000 | $43,628,735 |
| 7 | FROM PARIS WITH LOVE | $6,820,000 | $17,930,000 |
| 8 | EDGE OF DARKNESS | $5,695,000 | $37,179,000 |
| 9 | CRAZY HEART | $5,000,000 | $17,526,975 |
| 11 | THE BOOK OF ELI | $4,415,000 | $88,369,000 |
| 10 | WHEN IN ROME | $4,207,000 | $26,805,000 |
| 12 | THE BLIND SIDE | $2,670,000 | $245,136,000 |
Source: Exhibitor Relations Co.
Tag(s): VSDAY, PJALT, WOLFM, HWAVA, DEARJ