Google Comedy Soft, 'Purge' Soars at Box Office

Who knew Americans wouldn’t be eager to laugh about an Internet company at a time when our cyber-secrets are increasingly at risk?

The Internship, the reunion of Wedding Crashers stars Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, debuted with a soft $18 million estimate. The film isn’t as raunchy as the duo’s last hit together, but it does serve as an unabashed valentine to all things Google, a company with ties to the Obama administration.

Audiences were far more eager to sample The Purge, the socially charged thriller about a future America in which the law isn’t enforced for one night each year to allow for unexpurgated violence. The film, budgeted at roughly $3 million, brought in $36 million to win the weekend.

After Earth, Will Smith’s new space saga, dropped nearly 60 percent in its second weekend of release for a forgettable $11 million haul.