HOLLYWOOD - Love is indeed in the air.The Will Smith-starrer Hitch, about a date doctor who has trouble taking his own medicine when he falls for a girl, clobbered the competition in its opening weekend, taking in a hearty $45.3 million. It pushed last week's champ, the creepy Boogeyman down to second with $10.8 million. Sony Pictures dominated the top three spots on the box office list, with their road comedy Are We There Yet? coming third with $8.5 million.
Hitch now stands as the best Valentine's Day opener ever, beating out Daredevil, which opened in 2003 with $40.3 million, as well as the third best February premiere, behind The Passion of the Christ, which opened last year with $83.8 million and Hannibal, which debuted in 2001 with $58 million.
The other newcomer this week, the kiddie-fare Pooh's Heffalump Movie, came in fifth with $6 million.
This weekend, the Top 12 films grossed an estimated $107.4 million, up 22.77 percent from last weekend's $87.5 million take and up 2.17 percent from last year's draw of $105.1 million.
The top three films at the box office this time last year were: Sony Pictures' PG-rated 50 First Dates, which opened at No. 1 with $39.8 million in 3,591 theaters, averaging $11,098 per theater; Buena Vista's PG-rated Miracle which stayed in second place in its second week with $14 million in 2,755 theaters, averaging $5,093 per theater; and MGM's PG-13 rated Barbershop 2: Back in Business, which dropped to third place in its second week with $14.4 million in 5,337 theaters, averaging $2,790 per theater.
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BOX OFFICE TOP 10, ESTIMATES:
(Source: Exhibitor Relations, Inc.)
No. 1: Hitch (Sony Pictures, PG-13)
• Gross: $45.3 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 3,575
• Per-theater average: $12,671
No. 2: Boogeyman (Sony Pictures, PG-13)
• Gross: $10.8 million (-43%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,052 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $3,539
• Cume to date: $33.3 million
No. 3: Are We There Yet? (Sony Pictures, PG)
• Gross: $8.5 million (-20%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 2,810 (+20)
• Per-theater average: $3,025
• Cume to date: $61.5 million
No. 4: Million Dollar Baby (Warner Bros., PG-13)
• Gross: $7.5 million (-11%)
• Weeks opened: 9
• Theaters: 2,035 (+10)
• Per-theater average: $3,725
• Cume to date: $45 million
No. 5: Pooh's Heffalump Movie (Buena Vista, G)
• Gross: $6 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,529
• Per-theater average: $2,377
No. 6: The Wedding Date (Universal Pictures, PG-13)
• Gross: $5.6 million
• Weeks opened: 2 (-50%)
• Theaters: 1,704 (+9)
• Per-theater average: $3,286
• Cume to date: $19.5 million
No. 7: Hide and Seek (20th Century Fox, R)
• Gross: $5.5 million (-38%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 2,525 (-480)
• Per-theater average: $2,198
• Cume to date: $43.5 million
No. 8: Sideways (Fox Searchlight, R)
• Gross: $4.7 million (+2%)
• Weeks opened: 17
• Theaters: 1,619 (-167)
• Per-theater average: $2,934
• Cume to date: $53 million
No. 9: The Aviator (Miramax, PG-13)
• Gross: $4.6 million (-15%)
• Weeks opened: 9
• Theaters: 2,196 (-334)
• Per-theater average: $2,112
• Cume to date: $82.2 million
No. 10: Meet the Fockers (Universal, PG-13)
• Gross: $3.4 million (-29%)
• Weeks opened: 8
• Theaters: 1,883 (-621)
• Per-theater average: $1,806
• Cume to date: $269.9 million
OTHER OPENINGS
Inside Deep Throat (Universal, NC-17)
• Gross: $91,000
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 12
• Per-theater average: $7,583
Bride and Prejudice (Miramax, PG-13)
• Gross: $388,076
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 32
• Per-theater average: $12,127