"Da Vinci opening this big just tells you that people do want to go to the movies, they just need the right movie to go," Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations told The Associated Press. "You had a built-in audience from the book and the awareness levels were so high from this film. You would have to live under a rock not to know this movie was opening."
Coming in a strong second was DreamWorks’ CGI comedy Over the Hedge, which grossed $37.2 million. "We thought we could very easily coexist with The Da Vinci Code and I think the numbers bear that out," Dan Harris, executive vice president at Paramount told AP.
Also opening this weekend was the horror flick See No Evil, starring pro-wrestling star Kane, which came in sixth place with $4.3 million.
The Top 12 pics this week grossed an estimated $153.1 million, up 80.14 percent from last weekend’s total of $85 million but down 2.81 percent from last year's draw of $157.6 million.
The Top Three films at the box office this time last year were: 20th Cent Fox’s Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, which debuted at No. 1 with $108.4 million in 3,661 theaters, averaging $29,619 per theater; New Line’s Monster-In-Law, which dropped to second place in its second week with $14.3 million in 3,424 theaters, averaging $4,191 per theaters; and Universal’s Kicking & Screaming, which dropped to third place in its second week with $10.7 million in 3,470 theaters, averaging $3,090 per theaters (Click here to read last year's box office report).
BOX OFFICE TOP 10, ESTIMATES
(Source: Exhibitor Relations, Inc.)
No. 1: The Da Vinci Code (Sony, PG-13)
• Gross: $77 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 3,735
• Per-theater average: $20,616
No. 2: Over the Hedge (DreamWorks, PG)
• Gross: $37.2 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 4,059
• Per-theater average: $9,172
No. 3: Mission: Impossible III (Paramount, PG-13)
• Gross: $11 million (-56%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 3,450 (-609)
• Per-theater average: $3,193
• Cume to date: $103.2 million
No. 4: Poseidon (Warner Bros., PG-13)
• Gross: $9.2 million (-58%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 3,555 (unchanged)
• Per-theater average: $2,588
• Cume to date: $36.7 million
No. 5: R.V. (Sony Pictures, PG)
• Gross: $5.1 million (-49%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 2,925 (-611)
• Per-theater average: $1,744
• Cume to date: $50.4 million
No. 6: See No Evil (Lions Gate, R)
• Gross: $4.3 million
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 1,257
• Per-theater average: $3,461
No. 7: Just My Luck (20th Century Fox, PG-13)
• Gross: $3.3 million (-41%)
• Weeks opened: 2
• Theaters: 2,543
• Per-theater average: $1,327
• Cume to date: $10.4 million
No. 8: An American Haunting (Freestyle Releasing, PG-13)
• Gross: $1.6 million (-53%)
• Weeks opened: 3
• Theaters: 1,265 (-438)
• Per-theater average: $1,315
• Cume to date: $13.6 million
No. 9: United 93 (Universal, R)
• Gross: $1.4 million (-60%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 1,308 (-563)
• Per-theater average: $1,070
• Cume to date: $28.3 million
No. 10: Akeelah and the Bee (Lions Gate, PG)
• Gross: $1 million (-58%)
• Weeks opened: 4
• Theaters: 751 (-425)
• Per-theater average: $1,332
• Cume to date: $15.7 million
OTHER OPENINGS
The King (ThinkFilm, R)
• Gross: $9,100
• Weeks opened: NEW!
• Theaters: 1
• Per-theater average: $9,100
