BOX OFFICE REPORT (JAN. 4-6): Insert Bad Pun About 'Texas Chainsaw 3D' Carving Up Competition Here

Huh. I didn't quite see Texas Chainsaw 3D topping the box office in its debut weekend. Considering that I haven't heard one good thing about the movie and taking the fact that it was tracking poorly, no one should have seen this coming. The sequel (actually a direct sequel to the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre instead of the reboots or other sequels) beat out a host of returning films for the No. 1 spot. The rest of the box office performed well too, with the top four movies all making more than $15 million.

I expect to see Gangster Squad win the box office next weekend, fueled by star power of Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone and Sean Penn. The film was supposed to be released in the fall, but Warner Bros. held it to replace a scene that featured a theater shooting.

1. Texas Chainsaw 3D (N)
$23.00 million ($23.00 million)
I don't think I've seen a Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie in theaters since the 2003 remake that starred Jessica Biel. While I'm harboring a crush on Alexandra Daddario after seeing her in Parenthood and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (could there be two more different shows?), I'm probably not going to break that streak to see Texas Chainsaw 3D.

2. Django Unchained (2)

$20.08 million ($106.35 million)

After it's second weekend, Django Unchained is already $33 million ahead of Inglourious Basterds, director Quentin Tarantino's last film. I finally caught Django Unchained on Saturday, and was surprised to find a packed theater at a 2:50 p.m. showing. When a film can do that in its second weekend, it usually signals that film will be around for a bit.

3. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (1)

$17.53 million ($263.82 million)
I take back whatever I said a few weeks ago about The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey having box office issues. The first installment in Peter Jackson's new trilogy posted a better fourth weekend number than any of the Lord of the Rings films, and it has now passed The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring when it comes to overall domestic box office at the fourth-weekend mark.

4. Les Miserables (3)

$16.12 million ($103.61 million)
Les Miserables is now just $35 million away from becoming Tom Hooper's all-time highest grossing film. Not hard to do when The King's Speech only grossed $137.02 million, though.

5. Parental Guidance (4)

$10.13 million ($52.76 million)

Stop seeing this movie, people. You're better than airport security jokes and baseball bats to the nuts.

Next week's predictions:

1. Gangster Squad

2. Django Unchained

3. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

4. Texas Chainsaw 3D

5. Les Miserables

SOURCE: Box Office Mojo