Box Office Report: 'Carrie' Opens to $725,000 Thursday Night

Action pic "Escape Plan" and WikiLeaks movie "The Fifth Estate" are also opening this weekend, while "Gravity" is likely to have another strong outing.

Carrie, MGM and Screen Gems' new adaptation of Stephen King's classic novel, was unleashed on Thursday night, earning $725,000 in late-night and midnight runs.

The horror film starring Kick-Ass actress Chloe Grace Moretz in the titular role opposite Julianne Moore has the potential to take the No. 1 spot from Alfonso Cuaron's Gravity, now in its third week in theaters.

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Directed by Kimberly Peirce, Carrie, which opened at 10 p.m. in some cities, comes to theaters 37 years after Brian De Palma's big-screen adaptation, which starred Sissy Spacek. The story follows a timid high school student who suffers abuse from her religious mother and the torment of her classmates until she realizes she has telekinetic powers.

Opening at 3,157 locations, the horror pic -- made for under $30 million -- is likely to be a popular choice for the teen crowd and has a chance of hitting $30 million in its debut, although Sony is being far more conservative, suggesting it could open in the $18 million to $20 million range.

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However, space epic Gravity starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney has been showing incredible staying power and has the possibility to earn at least $30 million in its third outing. The Warner Bros. film has earned $204 million globally through Wednesday and could approach $300 million by the end of the weekend.

Also opening this weekend is Escape Plan, the action pic starring Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Summit Entertainment and Emmett/Furla film is opening in 2,833 theaters, but is likely to open soft, to about $10 million.

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DreamWorks' WikiLeaks movie The Fifth Estate also isn't likely to have a strong opening this weekend. Directed by Bill Condon and distributed in North America by Disney, Fifth Estate may only open in the $5 million to $6 million range, a blow for the filmmakers. It's opening in 1,769 theaters.

The movie, starring Benedict Cumberbatch as WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, faces fierce competition for adults from Gravity and Tom Hanks starrer Captain Phillips. (Sony's Captain Phillips opened to a better-than-expected $25.7 million last weekend.)

E-mail: Rebecca.Ford@THR.com

Twitter: @Beccamford