“Up in the Air” isn’t a flop, of course, but a $6,203 average per theater on a film’s first weekend in wide release (1,895 screens) isn’t great. It’s just okay, especially when you think of all the positive buzz the film has gotten and that George Clooney is the star. Also, generally speaking, the fewer the # of screens, the higher the per-screen average should be.

Meryl Streep’s “It’s Complicated,” playing in nearly 1,000 more screens (2,887) had a noticeably better average ($7,660) despite lukewarm to negative reviews. That’s a solid opening for a “non-event” movie.

And finally, “Up in the Air” is quite some ways from paying for itself. Even if it did cost $24m like the studio claims, this movie would have to earn about twice as much to fully cover its production costs as exhibitors and others keep about 50% of a movie’s domestic take at the box office. Not counting what Paramount has spent on distribution, advertising, Oscar campaigns, etc., which will add millions to the film’s total cost.

Will “Up in the Air” make a profit? If it really cost $24m, sure it will. But not necessarily because of its take at the domestic box office. Unless the Clooney film has very long legs, profits will likely come after ancillary revenues (DVDs, foreign markets, etc) start coming in.