AMERICAN SNIPER Breaks Box Office Records

When this year's Oscar nominations were announced last week, many people grumbled that the eight-movie Best Picture slate lacked even one box office smash. Sure the Academy felt these movies were significant, but did that matter if no one had even seen them?

American Sniper changed that scenario with its official opening weekend, racking up $89.5 million during the normal weekend frame and $105.3 million over the four-day Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, setting several records in the process.

The $89.5 million was the biggest winter opening weekend in box office history, trumping the $83.8 million brought in by The Passion of the Christ in February 2004. American Sniper also smashed the January opening weekend record, more than doubling the $41.5 million Ride Along grossed last year. American Sniper's MLK weekend opening number also beat Ride Along's MLK weekend opening by a score of $105.3 million to $48.6 million. Yeah, not even close.

American Sniper came close to another record, almost becoming the all-time biggest opening weekend for an R-rated film. The $91.8 million grossed by The Matrix Reloaded in 2003 still holds that record. Bradley Cooper did pass himself on that chart, though, having a better opening weekend than The Hangover Part II's $85.9 million.