‘Divergent,’ ‘God’s Not Dead’: What’s Behind Their Box-Office Breakouts

“Need For Speed” zooms overseas, “Muppets Most Wanted” may have hit nostalgia overload and “Veronica Mars” tumbled

We know “Divergent” hit the mark with its $54.6 million opening and launched a franchise, “The Muppets Most Wanted” missed and the Christian-themed “God’s Not Dead” delivered way beyond expectations at the box office.

This past weekend was a little up from last year’s and the overall box office is still running about 9 percent of where it was at this time last year. But there were several stories that went beyond the numbers, and here are five takeaways that you might not have noticed:

“Divergent” drew more than book fans

Readers of Veronica Roth’s novels made up the core audience for Lionsgate’s big-screen adaptation, but exit numbers revealed that only 50 percent of the opening weekend audience for “Divergent” had read the book.

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