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| Entertainment News - updated 1:14 AM ET Dec 6 |
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Reuters | E! Online | AP | Comics  | Hollywood Reporter | Variety | Inside.com | More ...
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By Brian Fuson LOS ANGELES (The Hollywood Reporter) --- In a replay from a week ago, Universal's "Meet the Parents" and Buena Vista's "Remember the Titans" easily held off the competition -- including four new wide releases --Êand took the top two spots at the North American boxoffice. It's the second consecutive weekend at No. 1 for "Meet the Parents." The Robert De Niro-Ben Stiller starrer continued to have warm, familial relations with the public and grossed an estimated $21.3 million during its sophomore frame, bringing the estimated 10-day cume to a very respectable $59 million. The Jay Roach-helmed comedy was down a slim 26% from the first three days of its four-day Columbus Day weekend debut. "Remember the Titans" tackled an estimated $13.5 million during its third weekend, slipping a lean 30% from a week ago. The Denzel Washington starrer has collected an estimated $64.7 million. Friday the 13th was a harbinger of good luck at the boxoffice as this weekend marked the first frame in the past 12 weeks to top the comparable period last year. The estimate for this weekend's Golden Dozen was up 6% from the total for the top 12 films the first weekend after Columbus Day 1999, ending a run of 11 weekends of lower boxoffice grosses compared with a year ago. The boost this weekend came from the continued stellar returns of the top two films as well as the moderate debuts of new releases. The four new wide releases this weekend are rated R, and each finished below the $10 million mark. "Parents" is rated PG-13, while "Titans" is rated PG. New Line's "Lost Souls" starring Winona Ryder turned in the best performance of the new releases. The horror film possessed an estimated $8.4 million and the third slot. The film's most direct competition was Warner Bros.' "The Exorcist," which in the fourth weekend of its reissue landed in the sixth spot with an estimated $5.4 million, racking up a total close to $30.7 million. Picking up the fourth spot was Paramount's "The Ladies Man," a comedy based on a "Saturday Night Live" skit starring Tim Meadows, which opened with an estimated $5.7 million. DreamWorks' "The Contender" debuted in the fifth spot with an estimated $5.5 million. The political drama starring Joan Allen and Jeff Bridges performed better than the distributor expected and exceeded tracking indicators. The company also was pleased that the film grossed its cost on its opening weekend and said "Contender" played well across the board but slightly better in upscale center-city locations. Making an appointment in the seventh spot was Artisan's "Dr. T and the Women." Director Robert Altman's romantic comedy starring Richard Gere, Helen Hunt, Farrah Fawcett and Shelley Long cost roughly $12 million and debuted with an estimated $5.2 million from 1,489 locations. Artisan was pleased with the opening and said the film will make a profit by the end of its run after ancillary revenue is counted. The film packing the biggest punch from the fewest theaters this weekend was Warner Bros.' "Best in Show," which demonstrated its meritorious pedigree by pulling in an estimated $2.3 million from a relatively slim 291 locations. The comedy added 238 locations this weekend and tied for the ninth spot with DreamWorks' "Almost Famous," which was in 2,262 theaters. The "dogumentary" from Christopher Guest, who directed and stars in the film, has garnered an estimated $4.1 million and was off only 7% in existing theaters. It will expand to about 150 more venues this weekend. Warner Bros.' "Get Carter" dropped a dismal 59% during its second weekend, grossing an estimated $2.7 million to land in the eighth spot. The Sylvester Stallone starrer has collected about $11.5 million. When "Meet the Parents" arrived in the top spot last weekend, Universal tied a record by having four consecutive releases debut at No. 1. It's the first time since 1989 that any studio has connected such a series of top openings. Universal did it with "Nutty Professor II: The Klumps," "Bring It On," "The Watcher" and "Parents." Paramount did it in 1989 with "Major League," "Pet Sematary," "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" and "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier." Warner Bros. said sneaks of "Pay It Forward" continued to illicit some of the strongest marks in the company's history. The Kevin Spacey-Helen Hunt starrer opens wide this weekend. There was plenty of activity in the limited-release world as Universal's "Billy Elliott" arrived stateside in 10 theaters in six markets and grossed an estimated $220,000. The British drama about a young boy in a mining town who has a passion for dance averaged a stellar $22,000 per theater. In exit polls, 96% of respondents checked the top two boxes, while 83% marked definite recommend. The audience was predominantly female, and 70% of the overall audience was more than 30 years old. Universal said it will add 50 theaters in the same markets next weekend. Sony Classics' "Just Looking," a coming-of-age comedy directed by Jason Alexander, opened in six theaters and grossed an estimated $5,075, a dismal $846 per-theater average. New Line's "Bamboozled" grossed an estimated $102,000 in 17 theaters during its second weekend, averaging a solid $6,000 per theater and upping its cume to about $366,000. Artisan's "Requiem for a Dream" took in about $50,000 from two locations during its sophomore frame, averaging a remarkable $25,000 per theater and raising its total to about $147,000. Fox's "Tigerland" took in an estimated $15,758 from five locales, averaging $3,152 per theater, for an estimated cume of $60,449. Fine Line's "Saving Grace" added an estimated $134,000 this weekend, bringing the comedy's cume to an estimated $12.1 million. The estimate for this weekend's Golden Dozen is $75.7 million, up 6% from the total for the top 12 films during the comparable frame last year. The leading films then were Fox's "Fight Club" with $11 million and Paramount's "Double Jeopardy" with $10.2 million. The Hollywood Reporter forecasts the total for all films this weekend to be in the low- to mid-$80 million range, up slightly from last year's $80.8 million. For the week ending Oct. 12, the national boxoffice was down a negligible 1% from the comparable seven-day period a year ago ($117.1 million vs. $118.3 million). The year-to-date total is still slightly lower but statistically tied with 1999 ($5.70 billion vs. $5.72 billion). As it held the top spot for the second consecutive weekend, "Meet the Parents" averaged a solid $8,145 per theater from 2,615 locations, while second place "Remember the Titans" averaged $4,952 per theater from 2,726 venues. "Lost Souls" found 1,970 locations and averaged $4,264 per theater in the third spot, followed by "Ladies Man," which averaged $2,819 per theater from 2,022 pads. As it polled the fifth slot, "The Contender" averaged $3,628 per theater from 1,516 locales, while "Exorcist" levitated a per-theater average of $3,263 from 1,655 sites. Next was "Dr. T and the Women," which averaged $3,492 per theater, followed by "Get Carter." The actioner was in 2,315 houses, averaging $1,166 per theater. In tying for the ninth slot, "Best in Show" averaged a robust $7,904 per theater, while "Almost Famous" averaged $1,017 per theater and has collected an estimated $26.7 million to date. More entertainment industry news at The Hollywood Reporter Online
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