'Dragon Tattoo' kicks off holiday B.O.

'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo'Kickstarting a packed Christmas frame, Sony's "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" earned $1.6 million from latenight Tuesday screenings, starting at 7 p.m."Dragon Tattoo" broadens today to 2,914 locations -- not all of which screened the film Tuesday night.Paramount also boosted ticket sales, with "Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol" earning Tuesday a total of $3.7 million, of which $2 million came from evening and latenight shows. The film's existing large-format locations (at 425) contributed $1.7 million; pic had approximately 2,400 additional theaters Tuesday night."Ghost Protocol" and "Dragon Tattoo" are expected to jockey for first place this weekend, with projected six-day domestic bows at around $40 million."Dragon Tattoo," which received an A CinemaScore from Stateside auds (not surprising given opening night's usual hardcore fan turnout), also launches this weekend in Scandinavia, including Sweden, where the film is set and has scored rave reviews from local critics.Sweden's largest evening newspaper, Aftonbladet, described "Dragon Tattoo" as "a hell of a ride -- crazy, nasty and sexier than the Swedish original," while the country's largest pubcaster, Swedish Television called the remake "a much better, much tighter thriller. Hollywood wins."Prior to its release, some B.O. pundits questioned whether Sony's "Tattoo" adaptation would play internationally, as the first film became a major B.O. hit overseas, grossing more than $93 million outside the U.S.Up next for Sony's "Tattoo" are the U.K. and Russia, where the pic is set to bow over the next two weeks. Contact Andrew Stewart at andrew.stewart@variety.com