‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ Still on Top Despite Plummeting Ticket Sales

By Cheri Cheng - 21 Feb '15 12:19PM

The highly anticipated raunchy romance, "Fifty Shades of Grey," is still leading the U.S. box office despite plummeting ticket sales.

In its second week, ticket sales declined drastically by 72 percent, which is not surprising since the movie opened to big numbers during Valentine's/Presidents Day weekend. According to Variety, the Universal movie brought in $7.8 million on Friday. The movie is projected to earn over $24 million in its second weekend. The movie's 10-day total could be up to $131 million by the end of Oscar weekend.

During the movie's opening weekend, it shattered the all-time opening record in February, bringing in $85 million. By Wednesday, the movie passed the $300 million mark worldwide.

Although the movie, which is based on E.L. James' book, "Fifty Shades of Grey," did not get great reviews, a sequel is reportedly in the works.

"Fifty Shades of Grey," "Kingsman the Secret Service," and "The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water" continue to lead the box office. "The DUFF," "McFarland USA" and "Hot Tube Time Machine 2" all had weak openings.