Miramax Films' PG-13 Chicago lost a little of its jazz, dipping from third place to sixth with an ESTIMATED $7.1 million (-13%) at 623 theaters (+7 theaters; $11,461 per theater). Yet, if Miramax opens this musical extravaganza wide, you may see the Oscar-touted film shoot back up the charts. Chicago's cume is $50.7 million.
Directed by Rob Marshall, it stars Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Richard Gere.
The box office charts wouldn't be complete without a few Hobbits. New Line's PG-13 smash The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers still held power in its seventh week, slipping two spots to No. 7 with an ESTIMATED $5 million (-24%) at 2,175 theaters (-491 theaters; $2,299 per theater). But here's the real kicker--its total box office grosses to date is now approximately $315.9 million. Not too shabby.
Directed by Peter Jackson, it stars Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom and Viggo Mortensen.
20th Century Fox's PG-13 Just Married fell one spot to take eighth place with an ESTIMATED $4.9 million (-24%) at 2,408 theaters (-297 theaters; $2,035 per theater). The tale about a honeymoon from hell has gained a respectable $49.8 million so far.
Directed by Shawn Levy, it stars Ashton Kutcher and Brittany Murphy.
Ninth place belonged to DreamWorks PG-13 Catch Me If You Can with an ESTIMATED $4.8 million (-26%) at 2,316 theaters (-460 theaters; $2,073 per theater). Its cume is approximately $151.9 million.
The biopic about con artist Frank Abagnale Jr. is directed by Steven Spielberg and stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks and Christopher Walken.
New Line's R-rated About Schmidt dropped one spot to tenth, rounding out the list with an ESTIMATED $4.7 million (-13%) at 1,236 theaters ($3,803 per theater). The classic slice of Americana has gathered a noteworthy $44.3 million to date with only limited release. Imagine what it could do if it goes wide.
Directed by Alexander Payne, it stars Jack Nicholson, Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney and Kathy Bates.
OTHER OPENINGS
Universal Pictures' R-rated The Guru opened in limited theaters with an ESTIMATED $648,000 at 62 theaters ($10,452 per theater).
The comedy is about an Indian man who comes to seek his fame and fortune in America but winds up becoming the next "It" guru, spouting sexual advice to New York's lonely elite. Directed by Daisy von Scherler Mayer, the films stars Jimi Mistry, Heather Graham and Marisa Tomei.
WEEKEND COMPARISON
Overall, the box office numbers for the top 12 films jumped 18 percent from last weekend's dismal $79.9 million, with a total haul of $94.6 million.
"This was a really strong weekend for a January, which is usually kind of slow," Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations told AP. "To have two films over $16 million is not bad at all."
This weekend also saw a 20 percent increase from the same weekend last year, which took in only $78.5 million.
Last year, Sony's R-rated Black Hawk Down dominated the box office in its sixth week with $11.1 million at 3,143 theaters ($3,536 per theater); Buena Vistas' G-rated Snow Dogs was second in its third week of release with $10.1 million at 2,454 theaters ($4,156 per theater); and Warner Bros.' PG-13 teen drama A Walk to Remember held the third spot in its second week with $8.8 million at 2,420 theaters ($3,651 per theater).