Revolution Studios and Columbia Pictures' PG-13 rated sci-fi action adventure The One kicked off in second place to a much stronger than anticipated ESTIMATED $20.0 million at 2,894 theaters ($6,911 per theater).

Directed by James Wong, it stars Jet Li.

"I think we owe (the hefty opening) to really great action and great special effects. I think the PG-13 rating allowed it to appeal to a wide audience," Sony Pictures Entertainment worldwide marketing & distribution president Jeff Blake said Sunday morning.

"Women in the exit surveys seemed to enjoy it as much as men because it really was not a dark picture at all. It was fun. I think this is the first time (a film with Jet Li in a starring role) has been rated PG-13. We are his biggest (opening in) a starring role. Romeo Must Die opened Mar. 22, 2000 to $18.0 million and ended up doing $56 million. That's a nice neighborhood to be in. Kiss of the Dragon opened July 1 of this year and grossed $13.3 million. It ended up doing $37 million. Both of those were R rated. This is his first PG-13 and, I think, the first time he really had a chance to appeal to wide audiences."

One opened to "a wide range of ages and a wide range of ethnicities, too. It really popped in the suburban malls as well as some of the urban centers and (did very well with Asian moviegoers) on the West Coast. So we really got a wide audience on this one and I think that's what expanded it and allowed it to beat some of the estimates.

"I think the key thing is that it appealed to a wide audience-much wider than you'd normally expect in a martial arts films. We were able to break through that barrier. I think the special effects were incredible so it wasn't (just) a plain action film. And the PG-13 rating really allowed us to break through to some new fans."

Asked why it performed so much better than insiders had expected to see it do, Blake said, "I think people viewed this, perhaps, as a narrow film (with appeal only to) young males. While that certainly was a great audience for us, we were able to (attract a broader audience)."

Blake pointed to the industry's strong performance overall this weekend and said, "It's great to be a part of sort of a kick off of the holiday season. I think it's clear that moviegoing is still a very viable option (for the public) and if the product is there that appeals to a wide audience very clearly (it's going to do business). I think we'll see that will be true right through the next couple of months. We've got a lot riding on it with Not Another Teen Movie and Ali and Black Hawk Down getting started in limited release. So we're betting on the next couple of months."

Paramount's PG-13 rated thriller Domestic Disturbance made less noise than expected, opening in third place to an ESTIMATED $14.5 million at 2,910 theaters ($4,983 per theater).

Directed by Harold Becker, it stars John Travolta.

"I think this number is the result of a couple of things-one being the success of Monsters, which did a lot more business than anyone had anticipated," Paramount distribution president Wayne Lewellen said Sunday morning.

"I think to get that level of business, they (Monsters) had to play to everybody. They couldn't just play to young kids. Certainly, the people who take the young kids are the families or older females primarily, which was our audience we thought. Monsters impacted our number. I don't think there's any question about it. I don't think The One affected us as much as Monsters' gross did. I think the World Series had an effect, to some extent. And this war that's going on certainly had an effect on everybody, to some extent."

Asked who was on hand for Disturbance, Lewellen said the studio's exit polls showed the audience was, "58 percent female and 42 percent male. The Top Two Boxes were 88 percent (excellent and very good) and the Definite Recommend was 72 percent."