A new romantic comedy about delayed gratification hit a roadblock of its own this weekend, as "The Five-Year Engagement," produced by Judd Apatow, fizzled at the box office.
According to a report in TheWrap, Sony's "Think Like a Man" is projected to hold the No. 1 spot for the second week in a row, thanks to a $5.5 million Friday and a projected $16 million weekend. That would put it ahead of "The Lucky One," the Zac Ephron-carried adaptation of a Nicholas Sparks romance novel.
"The Five-Year Engagement," co-written by Nicholas Stoller and Jason Segel, brought in just $3.5 million on Friday, and will likely barely break $10 million over the weekend. The film was expected to make a "Bridesmaids"-like splash at the office, with many predicting that the combined star power of Apatow and Segel would power it to a $20 million opening.
The Universal Pictures movie cost about $30 million to make, and The Hollywood Reporter notes that the studio will share any losses with Relativity Media, its partner on the project. "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," the movie that catapulted the Segel-Apatow connection to prominence, opened to a warmer $17.7 million in 2008.
Audiences gave "The Five-Year Engagement" a 'B-minus' CinemaScore, and critics gave it mixed reviews. Some appreciated the chemistry between Segel and his co-star, Emily Blunt; others thought the film's title offered a pretty good idea of what it felt like to endure its 124-minute running time.
While the third-place finish may be disappointing, "The Five-Year Engagement" did open ahead of Jason Statham's new movie, "Safe," and John Cusack's Edgar Allan Poe thriller, "The Raven" -- both of which earned $2.5 million on Friday.
Meanwhile, "The Avengers" has raked in more than $73 million in its first three days overseas, suggesting that the folks behind "Think Like a Man" should enjoy their time at the top while it lasts.
PHOTOS: "Five-Year Engagement" Premiere
