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The epic battle tale "Kingdom of Heaven" fought its way to the top of
the box office, taking in $20 million in its debut weekend, but the film
did little to boost slumping
revenues at the start of the summer movie season.
The film by "Gladiator" director Ridley Scott features heartthrob
Orlando Bloom as a warrior in Jerusalem between the Second and Third
Crusades. The R-rated movie was followed in the rankings by another new
R-rated movie, "House of Wax," which brought in $12.2 million, according
to studio estimates Sunday.
"Kingdom of Heaven" features Bloom as blacksmith-turned-warrior Balian
who joins his knightly father in Jerusalem. The film also features Liam
Neeson as Balian's father, the knight Godfrey of Ibelin, as well as Jeremy
Irons and Brendan Gleeson.
"House of Wax," featuring Elisha Cuthbert and Paris Hilton in a remake
of the Vincent Price horror tale, is the latest from producer Joel
Silver's Dark Castle Entertainment.
The other notable new movie this weekend was "Crash," which features
Don Cheadle, Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon and rapper Chris "Ludacris"
Bridges in intertwining stories examining racial stereotypes in Los Angeles. The
R-rated film played in 1,864 theaters and finished fourth with $9.1
million.
"The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" dropped to third place with
nearly $9.13 million after debuting last weekend at the top spot.
Hollywood's box office slump continued with revenues down for the 11th
straight weekend compared with the same weekend last year, said Paul
Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.
The top 12 movies grossed $76.9 million, down 24 percent from last year
at this time when "Van Helsing" and "Mean Girls" were the top movies.
"It was quite an underwhelming week," Dergarabedian
said. "This is theoretically the first weekend of the summer and it
doesn't feel like one."
Though "Kingdom of Heaven" pulled in $20 million, it paled in
comparison to other recent blockbusters that opened during the first
weekend of May, Dergarabedian said. "Van Helsing" opened last year with a
three-day haul of $51.7 million, while "X2: X-Men United" opened in 2003
with $85.6 million. In 2002, "Spider-Man" debuted the same weekend and
collected a whopping $114.8 million.
"Kingdom of Heaven" played in wide release at 3,216 theaters and
averaged $6,219 per cinema, said Bruce Snyder, president of domestic
distribution at Twentieth Century Fox. It also opened in nearly 100
international markets and earned an additional $56 million, Snyder said.
"It's a great start and we're very pleased," Snyder said.
Box office watchers anticipate that Hollywood's slide will end May 19
when the final installment in the "Star Wars" prequel trilogy debuts.
"Believe me, when 'Star Wars' comes out, people will drop everything
and come to the theater," Dergarabedian said.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American
theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be
released Monday.
(CRIENGLISH) | 
Updated: 2005-05-09 13:54
