HOLLYWOOD - After last weekend's Super Bowl madness, audiences were in the mood for a different kind of game--be it mind games or the challenge of cheating death--as the top three box office spots were dominated by new releases. The new spy drama The Recruit took top honors with a decent $16.5 million*, while second place holder Final Destination 2 nearly caught up to The Recruit with $16.2 million. The third spot belonged to Biker Boyz with a slim $10.1 million.
Pushed down to the number four and five spots were last weekend's winners Kangaroo Jack at $9 million and Darkness Falls with $7.5 million.
THE TOP TEN
This weekend's box office topper, Buena Vista's PG-13 The Recruit, opened with an ESTIMATED $16.5 million at 2,376 theaters ($6,944 per theater).
Directed by Roger Donaldson, it stars Colin Farrell, Al Pacino, Bridget Moynahan and Gabriel Macht.
The film revolves around a brilliant college graduate (Farrell) who is recruited by a CIA veteran (Pacino), sent to The Farm--the Agency's treacherous, mind-boggling training program--and programmed to be one of the spy elite.
"Al Pacino always delivers a great performance, and when you put him with Colin Farrell, the combination just whetted the appetite of the public on all sides," Chuck Viane, head of distribution for Disney, told the Associated Press.
Ever wonder how you could cheat death? New Line Cinema's R-rated Final Destination 2 gave us a few hints, as it opened at No. 2 with an ESTIMATED $16.2 million at 2,834 theaters ($5,716 per theater), just barely missing the top mark.
Directed by David R. Ellis, it stars A.J. Cook, Ali Larter and Michael Landes.
The sequel to the 2000 horror hit Final Destination further explores the possibility of escaping the vindictive Death, as a girl, with a premonition of a horrific car pileup on a highway, saves her friends from that particular fate, only to see them picked off one by one in other, more gruesome ways.
AP reports Final Destination 2 easily out-grossed its predecessor, which opened with $10 million. Russell Schwartz, president of domestic marketing for New Line, told AP he expects the sequel to at least match the $53 million total gross of the original Final Destination.
Coming in the third spot, DreamWorks' PG-13 Biker Boyz opened with an ESTIMATED $10.1 million at 1,766 theaters ($5,719 per theater).
Directed by Reggie Rock Bythewood, it stars Laurence Fishburne, Derek Luke, Orlando Jones, Kid Rock and Lisa Bonet.
The film follows the lives of lawyers and city workers who take to the streets by night in their leather gear to race in the world of underground motorcycle clubs.
Amazingly, Warner Bros. PG-rated Kangaroo Jack slipped only two notches to the No. 4 spot with an ESTIMATED $9 million (-22%) at 2,848 theaters ($3,172 per theater), even beating last weekend's top winner Darkness Falls. Its cume is approximately $45.8 million. Crikey!
Directed by David McNally, the silly comedy about a kangaroo who inadvertently makes off with some mob money into the wilds of the Australian Outback stars Jerry O'Connell, Anthony Anderson and Estella Warren.
Sony Pictures' PG-13 Darkness Falls certainly toppled from its top perch to claim fifth place with an ESTIMATED $7.5 million (-38%) at 2,865 theaters (+28 theaters; $2,618 per theater). Its total haul is approximately $22.2 million.
Pic revolves around a young man who, having escaped the Tooth Fairy's unrelentingly evil clutches as a boy, must return to save his hometown from the curse which has plagued it. This weekend, however, cheating death is apparently more exciting than cheating the Tooth Fairy.
Directed by Jonathan Liebesman, it stars Chaney Kley, Emma Caulfield and Lee Cormie.
*Box office estimates provided by Exhibitor Relations, Inc.
