By Amy Kaufman
Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES — Hollywood was unable to lure teens to the multiplex again this past weekend, as “Ender’s Game” became the latest young adult adaptation to open with modest ticket sales.

The pricey sci-fi flick debuted with a so-so $28 million, according to an estimate from Lionsgate’s Summit Entertainment, the movie’s distributor. Although the opening is far from disastrous — it’s actually $5 million more than industry predictions suggested — “Ender’s Game’s” performance is not nearly enough to create a new YA franchise.

Meanwhile, in somewhat of a surprise, Johnny Knoxville’s hidden-camera prank flick “Bad Grandpa” was the weekend’s runner-up. After debuting at No. 1, the film saw its ticket sales tumble only 36 percent this weekend to $20.5 million, raising the picture’s 10-day tally to $62.1 million.

Heading into the weekend, pre-release audience surveys indicated the 3-D animated movie “Free Birds” would easily top the comedy “Last Vegas.” Instead, the latter starring Morgan Freeman, Robert De Niro, Kevin Kline and Michael Douglas came in just ahead of the family film with $16.5 million — a healthy start given its modest $28 million budget. “Free Birds,” which cost $55 million to make, opened with $16.2 million.

Based on Scott Orson Card’s best-selling 1985 novel, “Ender’s Game” stars 16-year-old newcomer Asa Butterfield as a boy attempting to protect mankind from aliens. Though the movie is aimed at teenagers, it attracted an older crowd this past weekend, because 54 percent of the audience was 25 and older. Those who saw the film assigned it an average grade of B plus, according to market research firm CinemaScore. Even if the movie generates positive word-of-mouth, it will have to battle next weekend with the sequel “Thor: The Dark World,” which is expected to be a big hit.

“The real key to the success of the movie is going to be how we hold next weekend,” acknowledged Richie Fay, Lionsgate’s president of domestic distribution. “But if we can survive against ‘Thor,’ I think we’ll be in good shape.”

The movie is the latest in a series of films made for the under-18 crowd that have failed to connect at the box office. In the wake of the massively popular “Twilight” and “Harry Potter” franchises, “The Hunger Games” has been one of the only young adult novel adaptations to work at the multiplex. (The next entry in the series, “Catching Fire,” is set to hit theaters with a possible $150 million opening Nov. 22.)

Last summer, the second installment in the “Percy Jackson” series grossed just $67.3 million in the U.S. and Canada — roughly $20 million less than the first film collected domestically in 2010. Other YA casualties have included “The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones,” “The Host” and “Beautiful Creatures,” none of which ultimately made it above $32 million.

“Ender’s Game” was costly to produce — about $110 million. It was co-financed by OddLot Entertainment, the visual effects company Digital Domain and Summit. However, the financiers insisted that international presales took care of the majority of the film’s production costs, meaning they would not have much on the line financially.

Although “Ender’s Game” played to an older-than-expected demographic, “Last Vegas” resonated with exactly the crowd distributor CBS Films anticipated: the AARP set. About 83 percent of moviegoers were 25 and older, and 47 percent were 50 and older. Though critics loathed the movie, filmgoers enjoyed it, giving it an average A-minus grade.

Financed by CBS and Good Universe, “Last Vegas” follows four older gentlemen who travel to Sin City for a bachelor party. The movie played best in the South — where Freeman’s movies are often popular — and the Midwest: On Saturday, the movie sold more tickets at a theater in Oklahoma City than any other venue in the country.

“We always thought this would be a fly-over movie because movies about Vegas, which is a destination holiday location, tend to do better in middle America,” said Steven Friedlander, executive vice president of theatrical distribution for CBS Films.

As for “Free Birds,” the movie is the first partnership between Relativity Media and Reel FX Animation Studios. The companies plan to follow up with a slate of low-budget animated films.

The movie follows two turkeys (voiced by Woody Harrelson and Owen Wilson) that want to save their kind from ending up as Thanksgiving dinner. Given the film’s subject matter, Relativity is hopeful the movie will play well over Turkey Day. Though the picture didn’t get off to a fantastic start, it earned an average grade of A-minus from moviegoers, and no other films for little kids are slated to be released until Nov. 27.

In limited release, Universal Pictures opened its romance “About Time” in 175 theaters to disappointing results. The studio will launch the movie nationwide next weekend and was hopeful early filmgoers would spread positive word-of-mouth about the picture in advance of the wide release. However, not many showed up to see the film this past weekend: The movie about a young man (Domhnall Gleeson) who discovers he can travel through time grossed just $1.1 million.

Focus Features had better luck with “Dallas Buyers Club,” its critically beloved AIDS drama that grossed $264,128 in nine theaters past weekend. The film ended up with a per-location average of $29,347 — a solid start but behind the recent debut of fellow best picture hopeful “12 Years a Slave.”

Both “Dallas Buyers Club” and “12 Years a Slave” deal with heavy subject matter — though that hasn’t dissuaded moviegoers from turning up to the latter film. (“Slave” is now in about 400 theaters and has collected $8.8 million.)

“Dallas Buyers Club,” which has been in development for about two decades, is based on the story of Ron Woodruff (Matthew McConaughey), a homophobic Texan who began importing non-FDA-approved AIDS treatments after he was diagnosed with the disease in the 1980s. McConaughey and co-star Jared Leto, who plays Woodruff’s transgender business partner, have earned early Oscar buzz for their performances.

Next weekend, Focus will expand “Dallas Buyers Club” to 30 more theaters in 12 additional markets, including Dallas.