The Jonas Brothers are losing the expectations game.
The band's new concert movie, Jonas Brothers: The 3D Experience, grossed an estimated $4.8 million Friday, an unspectacular opening day that barely held off the Tyler Perry hold-over Madea Goes to Jail for the No. 1 spot, and forced box-office analysts to revise their weekend forecasts downward.
Where once a $30 million Friday-Sunday take was considered possible, if not likely, for Jonas Brothers, Exhibitor Relations' Jeff Bock now said the movie was looking at a $17 million three-day opening—$20 million, if Saturday-Sunday business picks up substantially.
"When you factor in the ticket prices," Bock said, "you're talking about a movie that's underpeforming."
Jonas Brothers is playing a 1,200-plus 3D-equipped and IMAX theaters, where tickets cost $15-18 each, about twice the national average.
Compared to last year's Miley Cyrus concert movie, which also played exclusively on 3D and IMAX screens, the Jonas Brothers' effort is looking especially lame. On its opening day, Cyrus' concert movie grossed nearly twice as much money ($8.7 million) on nearly half as many screens as the Jonases'.
The complete weekend standings and estimates will be out tomorrow.