Brian Brooks is managing editor of MovieLine.
Studio box office owned the spotlight this weekend, while specialties failed to impress. Sundance winner Middle Of Nowhere reigned over an otherwise blasé specialty weekend, averaging $13,005, while 
European-financed Simon And The Oaks took in over $10K in a single theater. Sony Pictures Classics rolled out its Sundance ’12 feature Smashed in four locations with an average of $7,506. The Weinstein Company’s War Of The Buttons, however, tanked with only a $914 average from 5 locations. Also opening, MPI Media’s Big Picture debuted with an average of $7,250 from two locations.
Related: ‘Taken 2′ Still #1; Ben Affleck’s ‘Argo’ Opens #2; ‘Sinister’ #3
Nicole Kidman, Matthew McConaughey, Zac Efron starrer The Paperboy headed into an additional 38 theaters in its second weekend, averaging $2,122, a big drop. In its debut, the polarizing pic averaged a bit more than $10K from 11 theaters. Abramorama expanded The House I Live In to an additional 6 theaters, averaging $2,809. In its initial rollout the film averaged $9,827 in a pair of cinemas. And Wuthering Heights headed into four additional theaters in its second weekend, averaging a comparatively stronger $4,750.
Dada Films and Film Collaborative did not report figures for their respective openers Excuse Me For Living and Gayby. Holdovers from Magnolia (V/H/S), Kino Lorber (The Revisionaires), IDP/ATO (The Oranges) and Drafthouse Films (Wake In Fright) have not reported second weekend numbers.
Related: Specialty B.O. Preview: ‘Middle Of Nowhere’, ‘Smashed’, ‘Simon And The Oaks’
NEW
The Big Picture (MPI Media) NEW [2 Theaters] Weekend $14,500, Average $7,250
Middle Of Nowhere (AFFRM) NEW [6 Theaters] Weekend $78,030, Average $13,005
Simon And The Oaks (The Film Arcade) NEW [1 Theater] Weekend $10,377
Smashed (Sony Pictures Classics) NEW [4 Theaters] Weekend $30,025, Average $7,506
War Of The Buttons (The Weinstein Company) NEW [5 Theaters] Weekend $4,570, Average $914
RETURNING / 2ND WEEKEND
The House I Live In (Abramorama) Week 2 [8 Theaters] Weekend $22,470, Average $2,809, Cume $46,713
The Paperboy (Millennium Entertainment) Week 2 [49 Theaters] Weekend $103,995, Average $2,122, Cume $244,785
Wuthering Heights (Oscilloscope Laboratories) Week 2 [4 Theaters] Weekend $10K, Average $2,500, Cume $23,117
HOLDOVERS / 3RD+ WEEKEND
The Other Dream Team (The Film Arcade) Week 3 [12 Theaters] Weekend $30,915, Average $2,576, Cume $73,459
Hellbound? (Area 23a) Week 4 [5 Theaters] Weekend $6,355, Average $1,267, Cume $18,881
How To Survive A Plague (Sundance Selects) Weekend $12,600, Average $1,400, Cume $92K
The Perks Of Being A Wallflower (Summit Entertainment) Week 4 [726 Theaters] Weekend $2,166,000, Average $2,983, Cume $6,151,445
Arbitrage (Roadside Attractions/Lionsgate) Week 5 [195 Theaters] Weekend $363,350, Average $1,863, Cume $6,673,239
Liberal Arts (IFC Films) Week 5 [25 Theaters] Weekend $18,760, Average $750, Cume $245K
The Master (The Weinstein Company) Week 5 [682 Theaters] Weekend $823K, Average $1,207, Cume $13,919,908
Detropia (Loki Films) Week 6 [11 Theaters] Weekend $16,215, Average $1,474, Cume $253,458
Lawless (The Weinstein Company) Week 7 [287 Theaters] Weekend $64K, Average $223, Cume $37,160,453
Samsara (Oscilloscope Laboratories) Week 8 [48 Theaters] Weekend $112,944, Average $2,353, Cume $1,800,564
Sleepwalk With Me (IFC Films) Week 8 [70 Theaters] Weekend $70K, Average $1K, Cume $2,120,000
Searching For Sugar Man (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 12 [157 Theaters] Weekend $202,767, Average $1,379, Cume $1,697,639
Safety Not Guaranteed (FilmDistrict) Week 18 [19 Theaters] Weekend $$6K, Average $333, Cume $4,007,584
The Intouchables (The Weinstein Company) Week 27 [59 Theaters] Weekend $50K, Average $847, Cume $12,745,311
