‘Spider-Man 2’ Tops Holiday Box Office
LOS ANGELES – “Spider-Man 2” pulled in a record $180 million in its first six days and obliterated other box-office highs over the long Fourth of July weekend.
The “Spider-Man 2” haul was well above the previous best six-day opening of $146.7 million set last year by “The Matrix Reloaded.”
“I think our hope was to go into the heart of the summer and grab the biggest six days possible. That’s pretty much what happened,” Jeff Blake, vice chairman for “Spider-Man 2” distributor Sony, said Monday.
Last weekend’s top film, Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 9/11,” fell to second place with $21 million over the four-day weekend, raising its total to $60.1 million. The film, Moore’s assault on President Bush’s response to the Sept. 11 attacks, could become the first documentary ever to top $100 million.
Doubling its theater count to 1,725, “Fahrenheit 9/11” held up strongly despite the onslaught of “Spider-Man 2,” which debuted in 4,152 cinemas.
“We feel great that we were able to absorb the blow of Spidey and come back fighting,” said Tom Ortenberg, president of Lions Gate Films, one of the distributors of “Fahrenheit 9/11.”
Hollywood had a record Fourth of July weekend, with the top 12 movies taking in $158.5 million from Friday to Sunday, beating 2002’s previous high of $139 million.
“Spider-Man 2” took in $115.8 million from Friday to Monday, according to Sony estimates. That put it far ahead of the previous best four-day holiday gross of $95.6 million set by “Shrek 2” over Memorial Day weekend this year.
With $152.6 million in its first five days, “Spider-Man 2” also shattered the $129 million record of “Shrek 2” for biggest Wednesday-Sunday debut.
From Friday to Sunday, “Spider-Man 2” took in $88.3 million, missing out on the best three-day weekend record of $114.8 million held by the first “Spider-Man.”
The first movie opened on Friday, so its initial business all came on the weekend, while the sequel already had rung up about $64 million in ticket sales Wednesday and Thursday. “Spider-Man 2” also had a comparatively quiet Sunday on the Fourth of July, when many people focused on outdoor activities such as parades, picnics and fireworks.
“Spider-Man 2” originally was scheduled to open the Friday before the Fourth of July, but the studio moved it up two days to get a jump on the holiday weekend.
“If they didn’t have a good movie, I think they would have waited,” said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations Co. “But they were confident enough to put it out on Wednesday and let the buzz build, and it really paid off.”
Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Monday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations: (Final figures will be released Tuesday.)
1. “Spider-Man 2,” $115.8 million.
2. “Fahrenheit 9/11,” $21 million.
3. “White Chicks,” $12 million.
4. “Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story,” $10.45 million.
5. “The Notebook,” $10.3 million.
6. “The Terminal,” $10.2 million.
7. “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” $8.1 million.
8. “Shrek 2,” $7.9 million.
9. (tie) “Garfield: The Movie,” $3.6 million.
9. (tie) “Two Brothers,” $3.6 million.
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