HOLLYWOOD - Moviegoers preferred watching the blessed union between American Pie's Jim and Michelle over peeping at the pic that launched Ben and Jen's real life romance. American Wedding's $34.2 million* take proved to be the icing on top of the box office this weekend, easily landing the comedy at No. 1. Even though this third installment in the American Pie series wasn't sweet enough to beat 2001's American Pie 2 debut of $45.1 million, American Wedding did better than the first film, which opened to $18.7 million in 1999, and its sugary take certainly gave the competition a toothache. It limited last week's box office champ, Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over, to a $20.1 million take and second place, and it sent Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and its $19.1 million booty sailing to third position.
Seabiscuit, meanwhile, wasn't horsing around. The racehorse biopic gained a spot in its second week, crossing the finish line in fourth place with $17.4 million, followed by the buddy actioner Bad Boys II, which rounded out the Top Five with $12.7 million.
But poor Gigli (rhymes with really, not wiggly) proved to be both a critical and commercial flop. The unilaterally panned film--starring Hollywood's most talked about couple, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez--failed to ignite a spark at the box office; the romantic thriller debuted to a disappointing $3.8 million and tied for seventh place with Finding Nemo, now in its tenth week.
THE TOP TEN
Universal Picture's R rated comedy American Wedding opened at the top of the box office this weekend with an ESTIMATED $34.2 at 3,172 theaters. Its $10,800 per theater average was the highest film of any film playing this week.
In this third installment of the American Pie series, Jim and Michelle and the gang are ready to wreak havoc with a new rite of passage: marriage.
Directed by Jesse Dylan, it stars Jason Biggs, Seann William Scott, Alyson Hannigan, Eddie Kaye Thomas and Thomas Ian Nicholas.
Dimension Films' PG rated Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over, last week's box office champ, followed in second place in its second week with an ESTIMATED $20.1 million in 3,364 theaters (+20 theaters; $5,975 per theater). Its cume is approximately $69 million.
Written and directed by Robert Rodriguez, it stars Alexa Vega, Daryl Sabara, Sylvester Stallone, Salma Hayek and Ricardo Montalban.
Buena Vista Pictures' PG 13 rated fantasy actioner Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl continued its hold on the box office, although it dropped a notch to third place in its fourth week of release with an ESTIMATED $19.1 million (-17%) at 3,390 theaters (-26 theaters; $5,634 per theater). Its cume is approximately $208.8 million.
Directed by Gore Verbinski and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, it stars Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley.
Universal Pictures' PG-13 rated drama Seabiscuit gained a spot in its second week after a slight expansion, taking in an ESTIMATED $19.1 million (-16%) in 2,421 theaters (+434 theaters; $7,215 per theater). Its cume is approximately $49 million.
Directed by Gary Ross, it stars Tobey Maguire, Jeff Bridges and Chris Cooper.
Sony Picture's R rated buddy actioner Bad Boys II fell two notches to fifth place in its third week with an ESTIMATED $12.7 million (-42%) at 3,022 theaters (-180 theaters; $4,203 per theater). Its cume is approximately $111.3 million.
Directed by Michael Bay, it stars Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Jordi Molla, Gabrielle Union and Peter Stormare.
*Box office estimates provided by Exhibitor Relations, Inc.