'Batman Begins' leads worldwide box office
By Dean Goodman
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Caped Crusader led the charge at the North
American box office as "Batman Begins" sold an estimated $46.9 million
worth of tickets in its first weekend, reigniting a lucrative superhero
franchise that burned out eight years ago. According to studio estimates
issued on Sunday, the Warner Bros. Pictures release has earned $71.1
million across the United States and Canada since opening on Wednesday.
The figures were within expectations, said Dan Fellman, president of
distribution at the Time Warner Inc. -owned studio.
"Batman Begins" also earned an estimated $41.7 million from 73
international markets, led by Britain with $7.8 million and France with
$3 million, both in three days, while Mexico contributed $4.2 million in
five days.But Batman could not prevent overall North American ticket
sales from posting their 17th consecutive weekend of year-on-year
declines. According to tracking firm Exhibitor Relations, the top 12
films earned $128.5 million, down almost 2 percent from last year.
The highest-profile victim of the box office blues has been Russell
Crowe's boxing drama "Cinderella Man," which has grossed just $43.6
million after three weekends. The Universal Pictures release, currently
at No. 8 after a $5.2 million weekend, cost $88 million to make.
Industry observers have blamed its failure on timing. Such prestige
releases usually come out in the fall as awards season gets underway.
"Batman Begins," which cost $150 million to make, stars Welsh-born actor
Christian Bale ("American Psycho") as Gotham City billionaire Bruce
Wayne and his alter ego, Batman. It was directed by Christopher Nolan,
the English filmmaker behind edgy thrillers like "Memento" and
"Insomnia." His dark interpretation of the Batman story thrilled
comic-book fans, and generally pleased critics. The five-day haul was
the best start among the five films in the "Batman" franchise, Warner
Bros. said. The record of $66 million was held by the third film, 1995's
"Batman Forever," which starred Val Kilmer. The franchise folded in 1997
with the next film, "Batman & Robin," starring George Clooney in a
batsuit with nipples. Director Joel Schumacher's campy effort bowed to
$52 million for the first five days.
Warner Bros. is also resurrecting fellow DC Comics superhero Superman,
and preparing for the November release of a fourth "Harry Potter" film.
Last weekend's champion, "Mr. & Mrs. Smith," slipped to No. 2 with $27.3
million, taking its 10-day haul to $98 million. The thriller stars
rumored real-life lovers Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie as married
assassins who must kill each other. Its distributor, 20th Century Fox,
predicted it could pass $160 million.
DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc.'s animal cartoon "Madagascar" was No. 3
with $11.1 million in its fourth weekend as its total rose to $147.2
million. Fox's "Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith" was No. 4
with $9.7 million, and a five-weekend tally of $347.8 million.
Paramount's Adam Sandler comedy "The Longest Yard" rounded out the top
five with $8 million, and a score of $131.9 million after four weekends.
The top 10 contained one other new release, the teen romantic comedy
"The Perfect Man," starring Hilary Duff and Heather Locklear. The
Universal Pictures release opened at No. 7 with just $5.5 million,
coming in at the lower end of modest expectations. The studio said the
film cost less than $10 million to make. Universal is a unit of NBC
Universal, which is majority-owned by General Electric Co . 20th Century
Fox is a unit of News Corp . Paramount Pictures is a unit of Viacom Inc
.
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