HOLLYWOOD - 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.