LOS ANGELES - A rat chased millions of moviegoers into theaters, but the furry star of "Ratatouille" also whipped up one of the worst openings in the history of Walt Disney Co's cartoon powerhouse Pixar Animation.
According to studio estimates issued on Sunday, "Ratatouille" about a rat who aspires to become a gourmet chef sold $47.2 million worth of tickets during its first three days. It took the No. 1 slot ahead of the new Bruce Willis movie "Live Free or Die Hard" with $33.2 million.
It was the lowest opening for a Pixar-produced release since the studio's second effort, "A Bug's Life," launched with $33.3 million in 1998 on its way to a $163 million total.
By contrast last year's Pixar entry, "Cars," drove off with $60.1 million -- a figure regarded as something of a disappointment -- and finished with $244 million.
If "Ratatouille" follows the same pattern as "Cars," it will gross about $189 million, becoming the third consecutive Pixar release to underperform its predecessor. But Disney was confident "Ratatouille" would easily pass $200 million.
Opening weekend predictions among financial analysts for "Ratatouille" had ranged from $50 million to $65 million. But movie industry polling had a more realistic target in the low $40 million range, according to Chuck Viane, Disney's president of domestic theatrical distribution.
TOUGH COMPETITION
Viane said the competition was unprecedented, with "Ratatouille" boxed in by "Live Free or Die Hard," which got a two-day head start by opening on Wednesday, and by the Monday night release of the hotly anticipated "Transformers."
Still, with a little help from the July 4 holiday, he predicted that "Ratatouille" would be "as successful, if not more successful, than most" Pixar films.
The most successful of Pixar's seven previous releases was 2003's "Finding Nemo," with sales of $340 million. It opened to $70.3 million. A year later, "The Incredibles" kicked off with $70.5 million, but lost steam and settled at $261 million.
