By Dean Goodman
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -
The new gambling drama "21" played
a winning hand at the weekend box office in North America,
earning an estimated $23.7 million in its first round,
distributor Columbia Pictures said on Sunday.
The fact-based saga revolves around a team of college
whizzes who conspire to count cards at blackjack tables in Las
Vegas. The cast includes Kevin Spacey, a professor who coaches
the students, and Laurence Fishburne, who plays a casino thug.
The movie was directed by Australian filmmaker Robert Luketic
("Legally Blonde").
Columbia Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp, said the opening
for the $35 million film exceeded expectations, and it played
strongly to old, young, male and female moviegoers.
After two weekends at No. 1, the animated smash "Dr. Seuss'
Horton Hears A Who!" slipped to No. 2 with $17.4 million. The
20th Century Fox comedy, featuring the voices of Jim Carrey and
Steve Carell, became the first release of 2008 to hit the
century mark, with sales of $117.3 million to date. Fox is a
unit of News Corp.
New at No. 3 was the spoof "Superhero Movie," with a
disappointing $9.5 million. Industry observers had expected an
opening in the low- to mid-teen millions. Two months ago, the
similarly themed "Meet the Spartans" opened to $18.5 million.
"Superhero Movie" was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios
Inc., and produced by Weinstein Co's Dimension Films banner.
Both are privately held. MGM declined comment.
'STOP-LOSS' MISFIRES
Prolific filmmaker Tyler Perry's latest comedy "Meet the
Browns" tumbled two places to No. 4 with $7.8 million, 61
percent lower than its opening weekend haul. Its total stands
at $32.8 million. The film was released by Lionsgate, a unit of
Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.
The Owen Wilson comedy "Drillbit Taylor" fell one place to
No. 5 with $5.3 million, also in its second weekend. Its drop
was 49 percent, and its total rose to $20.6 million. The film
was released by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc.
Paramount also released the Iraq war-themed drama
"Stop-Loss," which opened at No. 8 with just $4.5 million.
War-related films, such as "In the Valley of Elah" and
"Rendition" have bombed at the box office, and expectations
were low for "Stop-Loss," which stars Ryan Phillippe as a
soldier who faces a second tour of duty. It was made by
Kimberly Peirce, who directed Hilary Swank's Oscar-winning
performance in the 1999 film "Boys Don't Cry."
The British comedy "Run, Fat Boy, Run," the feature
directing debut of former "Friends" star David Schwimmer,
opened at No. 13 with $2.4 million. The film topped the U.K.
box office in September, and was initially scheduled to open in
North America the following month. It was released by
Picturehouse, a unit of Time Warner Inc.
Overall sales fell for a second consecutive weekend and the
first quarter finished on a flat note. Ticket sales for the
quarter stood at $2.1 billion, up 0.64 percent from the
year-ago period, according to Media By Numbers, which collects
box office data. Attendance was down 2.6 percent. A year ago,
sales were up 5.7 percent from the first quarter of 2006 and
attendance was up 3.9 percent.
Media By Numbers president Paul Dergarabedian said the box
office faced a tough comparison with last year. By the end of
the first quarter last year, three films had made over $100
million: "Ghost Rider," "Wild Hogs" and "300."
He predicted business would remain tough for the next few
weeks. The lucrative summer period begins May 2 with the Marvel
comic book adaptation "Iron Man," but no one expects the Robert
Downey Jr. movie to come close to the record-breaking $151
million opening for "Spider-Man 3" in 2007.
