T.I. and Will Packer on “Takers” Being the Number #1 Movie in America…

It took two years in the making but “Takers” has taken over the number #1 spot in the box office. [VIEW TRAILER]

Contrary to early media reports that listed “Exorcism” as the number one movie in the country, Sony Screen Gem’s “Takers” took in $20.51 million on opening weekend, while ‘Exorcism’ pulled in a respectable $20.36 million to take the #2 spot.

T.I. addressed the mix-up via a recent phone call to MTV:

It was so tight, they kinda misinformed people prematurely and gave out the wrong information. But officially….as it stands RIGHT NOW, ‘Takers’ is the #1 movie in the country, contrary to popular belief.

In my heart, I felt it would be.

[READ: "Takers" Atlanta Movie Premiere ~ PHOTOS + VIDEO]

Congratulations! It feels good to see the home team take over the country.  And speaking of home teams, producer Will Packer excitedly tweeted the announcement yesterday as well, he also gave a bit of movie economics 101, explaining who takes all the “Takers” cash.

When Will was asked on the social networking site Twitter, who gets all the profits from the film, he jokingly stated “I get all $20 mil”.  Will then schooled his followers on the economics of movie making:

Quick movie economics 101: NOBODY gets all the box off revenue from a film. 1st gets split (about 50/50) between theaters & studio/distribtr

THEN out of the half that comes to the studio the producers, actors, director will get “backend” $ depending on their deals.

A film is not actually “profitable” until it earns back what it cost to make it plus advertising and distribution costs.

Most films DO NOT turn a profit from their run in US theaters. It usually takes DVD, foreign, TV, etc. Called ancillary revenue streams.

Which basically means, “Takers” has a long way to go before they recoup all the cash, but it’s well on it’s way!  Especially with Tip and all his kids personally promoting the flick.

T.I.’s son, King shows support for his daddy by getting the movie’s title carved into his hair. That’s a million dollar endorsement right there!

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