Heroin pusher, honey bee lift box office

(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-11-05 11:37

"These are two great actors telling this true story of Frank Lucas," said Nikki Rocco, head of distribution at Universal. "You couldn't have picked a better cast."

DreamWorks and Paramount's "Bee Movie" features Seinfeld in his first big project since his TV sit-com went off the air nine years ago. Co-written by Seinfeld, the movie has him providing the voice of a bee who sues humanity for stealing his species' hard-earned commodity — honey.

"Bee Movie" owned the family crowd, and studio executives said they expect the movie to hold up well through the holidays. It does face direct competition this weekend with Friday's debut of the Warner Bros. holiday comedy "Fred Claus," starring Vince Vaughn as Santa's black-sheep brother and Paul Giamatti as St. Nick.

"We look forward to seeing how it plays out, but it really looks like there's some strong playing time ahead for both movies," said Anne Globe, head of marketing for DreamWorks.

The weekend's other new wide release — New Line Cinema's "Martian Child," starring John Cusack as a widower adopting a troubled boy who thinks he's from Mars — opened weakly with $3.65 million, finishing at No. 7.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "American Gangster," $46.3 million.

2. "Bee Movie," $39.1 million.

3. "Saw IV," $11 million.

4. "Dan in Real Life," $8.1 million.

5. "30 Days of Night," $4 million.

6. "The Game Plan," $3.85 million.

7. "Martian Child," $3.65 million.

8. "Michael Clayton," $2.9 million.

9. "Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married?", $2.7 million.

10. "Gone Baby Gone," $2.4 million.

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