‘Bad Grandpa’ Dethrones ‘Gravity' At The Box Office, Johnny Knoxville’s Latest Grabs $32M In Debut

“Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa” claimed the top spot at the box office, besting “Gravity,” and pulled in $32 million in its debut weekend. Alfonso Cuaron’s sci-fi thriller continues to play well as it scored $20.3 million in its fourth weekend and also hit big overseas.

While “Bad Grandpa” may be this week's king of the box office, most people are still talking about “12 Years a Slave.” The Steve McQueen-directed film, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Lupita Nyong'o and Michael Fassbender, played in only 123 theaters, compared to the 3,336 for “Bad Grandpa,” but pulled in $2.15 million, landing in eighth place.

“Bad Grandpa” was aided by its association with the “Jackass” brand and while not a direct sequel to the other “Jackass” movies, the film performed within expectations, notes the Hollywood Reporter. While $32 million is less than the debut of “Jackass: 3D,” which opened at $50.4 million in 2010, it falls in line with the other two “Jackass movies.” “Bad Grandpa” is also the first movie of the franchise to have a plot, with the elderly Irving Zisman, played by Knoxville, and his 8-year-old grandson going on a road trip.

“Gravity” dropped to second place after three weeks at the top of the heap. According to Box Office Mojo, “Gravity,” which stars Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, pulled in another $20.3 million, and to date has grossed $199.8 million domestically. It is expected to reach $250 million by the time it finishes its theatrical run. According to the Hollywood Reporter, “Gravity” pulled in $36.6 million overseas and its worldwide total sits at $364.2 million.

“Captain Phillips,” starring Tom Hanks, came in third with $11.8 million, bringing its total to $70.1 million, and Box Office Mojo expects the movie to reach $100 million domestically before it leaves theaters.

“The Counselor” was the other highly touted movie of the week, opening in 3,044 theaters. It has a star-studded cast, including Brad Pitt, Cameron Diaz, Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz and Michael Fassbender, and also plenty of pedigree, directed by Ridley Scott with a script by author Cormac McCarthy. But the drama flopped, landing in fourth place with just $8 million. (It also received no love from the critics, coming in at a pretty rotten 38 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2” rounded out the top five, earning $6.1 million.

The weekend’s box office can be viewed below.