It was very Scary at the box office this pre-Halloween weekend.
Scary Movie 3, which spoofs horror films such as The Ring and Signs, crop-circled the competition and took the top spot with a record $49.7 million*, knocking last week’s winner Texas Chainsaw Massacre down to No. 2 with $14.7 million.
Things just keep getting better and better for the Scary Movie franchise. The third installment surpassed its predecessors–Scary Movie opened in 2000 with $42.3 million, while Scary Movie 2 opened in 2002 with $20.5 million–and broke the record for the best October opening ever, beating reigning champ Red Dragon, which opened in 2002 at $36.5 million. Scary 3 is also the seventh best opener so far this year.
The feel-good movie Radio opened strongly in third place with $14 million, while courtroom drama Runaway Jury came in fourth with $8.4 million. Clint Eastwood‘s Mystic River rounded out the top five with $7.6 million.
As the other wide release opening this week, the Angelina Jolie romantic epic Beyond Borders didn’t manage to make it to the top 10, bringing in a tepid $2 million.
THE TOP TEN
Dimension Films’ PG-13 rated spoof-o-rama Scary Movie 3 triumphed in the No. 1 spot with an ESTIMATED $49.7 million in 3,505 theaters. Its $14,189 per theater average was the highest of the films playing wide this week.
The Scary Movie horror spoof franchise goes for a third round, this time taking shots at Signs, The Ring, The Matrix Reloaded and, strangely enough, 8 Mile.
Directed by David Zucker, it stars Anna Faris, Charlie Sheen, Simon Rex, Regina Hall, Queen Latifah, George Carlin and Leslie Nielsen.
Last week’s champ, New Line Cinema’s R rated horror The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, dropped from the top spot to take second place with an ESTIMATED $14.7 million (-48%) in 3,018 theaters (+2 theaters; $4,879 per theater). The horror remake’s cume is approximately $51.1 million.
Directed by Marcus Nispel, it stars Jessica Biel, Eric Balfour, Mike Vogel, Erica Leerhsen and Andrew Bryniarski.
Sony Pictures’ PG-13 rated tearjerker Radio debuted in the third spot with an ESTIMATED $14 million in 3,074 theaters, averaging $4,554 per theater.
Inspired by a true story, the film is the tale of a mentally challenged young man nicknamed Radio and the high school football coach who takes him under his wing, onto the bench and into his classroom.
Directed by Michael Tollin, it stars Cuba Gooding, Jr.. and Ed Harris.
Twentieth Century Fox’s PG-13 rated courtroom thriller Runaway Jury fell to No. 4 in its second week with an ESTIMATED $8.4 million (-29%) in 2,815 theaters (unchanged; $2,993 per theater). This latest John Grisham adaptation has taken in $24 million so far.
Directed by Gary Fleder, it stars John Cusack, Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman and Rachel Weisz.
Warner Bros.’ R rated drama Mystic River once again rounded out the Top Five in its third week with an ESTIMATED $7.6 million (-27%) in 1,493 theaters (+3 theaters; $5,094 per theater). Its cume is approximately $24.5 million.
Directed by Clint Eastwood, it stars Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Laurence Fishburne, Laura Linney and Marcia Gay Harden.
*Box office estimates provided by Exhibitor Relations, Inc.
Paramount Pictures’ PG-13 rated comedy School of Rock, dropped two positions to No. 6 in its fourth week with an ESTIMATED $6.5 million (-41%) in 2,951 theaters (unchanged; $2,203 per theater). Its cume is approximately $63.3 million.
Directed by Richard Linklater, it stars Black, Joan Cusack and Michael White.
Miramax Films’ R rated Kill Bill Vol. 1, fell a considerable way from last week’s second place to seventh in its third week with an ESTIMATED $5.9 million (-52%) in 2,633 theaters (-469 theaters, $2,271 per theater). Its cume is approximately $53.6 million
Directed by Quentin Tarantino, it stars Uma Thurman, Lucy Liu, Vivica A. Fox, Michael Madsen, Daryl Hannah and David Carradine.
MGM’s PG rated canine comedy Good Boy! dropped two spots to come in eighth in its fourth week with an ESTIMATED $4.8 million (-46%) in 2,762 theaters (-463 theaters; $1,756 per theater). Its cume is approximately $31.8 million.
Directed by John Hoffman, it stars Liam Aiken and the vocal talents of Matthew Broderick, Brittany Murphy, Carl Reiner and Vanessa Redgrave as the dog Hubble and his four-legged friends.
Universal Pictures’ PG 13 rated romantic comedy Intolerable Cruelty slipped two rungs to place No. 9 in its third week with an ESTIMATED $3.5 million (-45%) in 2,290 theaters (-280 theaters, $1,560 per theater). Its cume is approximately $28.1 million.
Produced by Ethan Coen and directed by Joel Coen, it stars George Clooney and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
Buena Vista’s PG-13 rated romantic comedy Under the Tuscan Sun rounded out the top 10 in its fifth week with an ESTIMATED $2.2 million (-34%) in 1,224 theaters (-439 theaters; $1,811 per theater). Its cume is approximately $37.1 million.
Directed by Audrey Wells, it stars Diane Lane, Sandra Oh, Vincent Riotta and Raoul Bova.
OTHER OPENINGS
Paramount Pictures’ PG-13 rated Beyond Borders premiered with an ESTIMATED $2 million in 1,798 theaters, averaging $1,112 per theater.
This romantic tale between a disaster relief doctor and a philanthropic socialite spans several years against an ever-changing backdrop of war.
Directed by Martin Campbell, it stars Angelina Jolie and Clive Owen.
Fine Line’s R rated Elephant opened with an ESTIMATED $90,000 in six theaters, averaging $15,000 per theater.
This year’s Canne Festival’s Palme d’Or winner, Elephant is about high school violence that unfolds on an ordinary school day inside an American high school, filled with schoolwork, football, gossip and socializing. For each student we meet, high school is a different experience: stimulating, friendly, traumatic, lonely, hard.
Directed by Gus Van Sant, it stars a cast of newcomers including Alex Frost, Eric Deulen and John Robinson.
Screen Gems R rated In the Cut and Disney’s animated Brother Bear both opened in limited theaters this weekend before expanding wide next week. The erotic thriller In the Cut, starring Meg Ryan, took in an ESTIMATED $95,000 in six theaters, averaging $15,833 per theater while the delightful tale Brother Bear wowed ’em with an ESTIMATED $285,026 in two theaters, averaging $142,513 per theater.
WEEKEND COMPARISON
The Top 12 films this weekend grossed an ESTIMATED $121 million, up a healthy 17.32 percent from last weekend’s $103.2 million. The Top 12 movies were also up 39 percent from this time last year when they took in $86.9 million.
Last year, Paramount’s R rated Jackass: The Movie was the hit of the week, debuting with $22.7 million in 2,509 theaters ($9,073 per theater); Dreamworks’ R rated thriller The Ring dropped to No. 2 with $18.4 million in 2,634 theaters ($7,019 per theater); Warner’s R rated Ghost Ship opened in third with $11.5 million in 2,787 theaters ($4,128 per theater).
