(Photo: Courtesy Warner Bros Pictures)

The box office took a major beating this weekend, pulling in the worst numbers since the month the U.S. economy crashed (that's September 2008, for those with short memories), says the Hollywood Reporter.
Star-packed New Year's Eve won the weekend — if you could call it that — with $13.7 million, about $20 million below projections for a film that stars Michelle Pfeiffer, Zac Efron, Ashton Kutcher, Katherine Heigl, Lea Michele, Robert De Niro, Josh Duhamel, Halle Berry, Abigail Breslin, Ludacris, Hilary Swank and Seth Meyers.
To offer some perspective, the box office profit was likely lower than the cost of the perks package for just one of those stars.
"There weren't enough moviegoers," offered Dan Fellman, head of domestic distribution for Warner Brothers, the studio that produced New Year's Day. Ya think?
Jonah Hill's The Sitter came in second with $10 million, more or less on par with expectations.
Industry folks are likely hoping and praying that the winter holidays and the end of final exams for college kids will bring more bodies to the theater. Next week, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows will have the chance to duke it out with Charlize Theron's Young Adult and Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chip-Wrecked.

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