It was a big weekend at the box office, with Disney’s big prehistoric reptiles vanquishing the big Roman Empire, and two small comedies posting surprisingly big numbers.
As everybody expected, “Dinosaur” trampled everything else in its opening frame, devouring $38.6 million in 3,257 theaters. That was enough to end the the No. 1 reign of “Gladiator,” which fell to a still-respectable No. 2. The neo-sword-and-sandal epic still pulled in a few shekels — $19.1 million, pushing its total gross to $102.5 mil in just over two weeks.
Dreamworks’ post-pubescent comedy “Road Trip” opened its bid to be the next “Deuce Bigalow” at No. 3, with an impressive $15 million. But this weekend’s biggest news may be this: A Woody Allen movie actually made money! “Small Time Crooks” stole $3.8 million, despite playing in just 865 theaters.
In case anyone still cares, “Battlefield Earth,” the widely panned sci-fi movie starring John Travolta, fell to No. 6 in its second weekend. It has now made just $18.2 million and seems destined for a quick Top 10 exit.
Here’s a rundown of the weekend Top 10, according to estimates from Exhibitor Relations Co.:
1. “Dinosaur,” $38.6 million. 2. “Gladiator,” $19.1 million. 3. “Road Trip,” $15 million. 4. “U-571,” $4.6 million. 5. “Frequency,” $4.3 million. 6. “Battlefield Earth,” $3.8 million. 7. “Small Time Crooks,” $3.8 million. 8. “Center Stage,” $3.3 million. 9. “Where the Heart Is,” $2.9 million. 10. “The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas,” $2.5 million.
