Blog

Despite expectations that the Boston Marathon bombing would cut into moviegoing this weekend, Tom Cruise had no trouble guiding his sci-fi thriller Oblivion to a solid win at the box office.

Oblivion collected $38.2 million, according to studio estimates from the box-office tracking firm Hollywood.com.

The debut met most analysts' predictions, despite speculation that the Friday night standoff with a suspected Boston Marathon bomber would keep moviegoers glued to their television sets and dampen ticket sales, particularly on the East Coast.

"Escapism will always win out over reality," says Tim Briody, analyst for Boxofficeprophets.com.

Briody says the film acquitted itself well despite a news story that "captured a large amount of attention Friday night. And really, (the manhunt) is the purest example of a real-life movie unfolding before our eyes."

But Oblivion saw no competition from other major newcomers and, according to Rottentomatoes.com, won positive reviews from 59% of critics -- enough to secure plenty of blurbs for ads and posters.

About 68% of moviegoers liked the film, the survey site says.