HOLLYWOOD - Sometimes it pays to go back to the wild.The CGI-animated Madagascar-- about a group of pampered zoo animals inadvertently released back into the wild--surprisingly took the top spot away from reigning champ Star Wars: Episode III-Revenge of the Sith with $28.7 million. Revenge of the Sith came in third instead with $26 million, while Adam Sandler's remake The Longest Yard took second place with $26.1 million.
While those three holdovers remained strong draws, the weekend's new movies debuted quietly, contributing to the 15th-straight weekend of declining revenues compared to last year.
Ron Howard's Cinderella Man, starring Russell Crowe and Renee Zellweger in the story of Depression-era boxer Jim Braddock, led the newcomers, debuting at No. 4 with $18.6 million. The teenage gal-pal tale The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants opened in fifth place with $10.25 million, while the skateboarding saga Lords of Dogtown premiered at sixth with $5.7 million.
This weekend, the Top 12 films grossed an estimated $128.6 million, down 27.98 percent from last weekend's $178.1 million take and down 29.78 percent from this time last year's draw of $182.7 million.
The Top Three films at the box office this time last year were: Warner Bros. PG-13 rated Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, which debuted at No. 1 with $93.6 million in 3,855 theaters, averaging $24,303 per theater; DreamWorks' PG-rated Shrek 2, which dropped to second place in its third week with $37.9 million in 4,131 theaters, averaging $9,182 per theater; and 20th Century Fox's PG-13 The Day After Tomorrow, which dropped to third place in its third week with $27.8 million in 3,444 theaters, averaging $8,092 per theater.
(This week's box office Top 10 below...)
BOX OFFICE TOP 10, ESTIMATES:
(Source: Exhibitor Relations, Inc.)
No. 1: Madagascar (DreamWorks, PG)
• Gross: $28.7 million (-39%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 4,142 (+11)
• Per-theater average: $6,929
• Cume to date: $101 million
No. 2: The Longest Yard (Paramount Pictures, PG-13)
• Gross: $26.1 million (-45%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,634 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $7,182
• Cume to date: $95.8 million
No. 3: Star Wars: Episode III-Revenge of the Sith (20th Century Fox, PG-13)
• Gross: $26 million (-53%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,650 (-13)
• Per-theater average: $7,123
• Cume to date: $308.8 million
No. 4: Cinderella Man (Universal, PG-13)
• Gross: $18.6 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,812
• Per-theater average: $6,615
No. 5: The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (Warner Bros., PG)
• Gross: $10.2 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 2,529
• Per-theater average: $4,051
• Cume to date: $13.9 million (opened Wednesday)
No. 6: Lords of Dogtown (Sony/TriStar Pictures, PG-13)
• Gross: $5.7 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 1,865
• Per-theater average: $3,056
No. 7: Monster-in-Law (New Line Cinema, PG-13)
• Gross: $5.3 million (-48%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 3,025 (-205)
• Per-theater average: $1,752
• Cume to date: $70.3 million
No. 8: Crash (Lions Gate, R)
• Gross: $3.3 million (-29%)
• Weeks opened: 5
• Theaters: 1,319 (-361)
• Per-theater average: $2,502
• Cume to date: $40.9 million
No. 9: Kicking & Screaming (Universal Pictures, PG)
• Gross: $2.1 million (-59%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 1,836 (-1,130)
• Per-theater average: $1,144
• Cume to date: $47.5 million
No. 10: Unleashed (Focus Features, R)
• Gross: $889,576 (-53%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 575 (-844)
• Per-theater average: $1,547
• Cume to date: $23.6 million
OTHER OPENINGS
Rock School (Picturehouse, R)
• Gross: $28,300
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 32
• Per-theater average: $884