Claude Brodesser reports: Executives at Universal Pictures may be going apesh-t: Box office numbers are in from last night's opening night of King Kong. It's not pretty.

$9.7 million. That's the total take for Wednesday night's showings of Kong on 3,567 screens. Despite great critical reviews, that means that King Kong might already be a disappointment. Box office insiders tell FishbowLA that at most, Kong is likely to get $45 million to $50 million for the whole weekend—a disasterous figure for a film that's rumored to cost over $250 million to make and another $100 million to market.

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