The ComingSoon.net Box Office Report has been updated with studio estimates for the weekend. Be sure to check back on Monday for final figures based on actual box office.
Columbia Pictures’ Spider-Man 3 exploded into conventional theaters and IMAX, smashing the opening weekend record previously held by Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest ($135.6 million). Spidey earned an incredible $148 million in a record 4,252 theaters domestically, which also resulted in the biggest average per theater ever – $34,807. Spider-Man 2 opened to $88.1 million in 2004 and Spider-Man to $114.8 million in 2002.
On Friday, the third film broke the records for biggest opening day and single day, making $59 million compared to “Dead Man’s Chest’s” $55.8 million opening day.
The Sam Raimi-directed film added $227 million from May 1st through today internationally as well, bringing the worldwide total to $375 million! The studio is said to have spend $258 million on the production of the movie and another $100 million on the marketing.
The movie has also claimed the largest gap domestically between 1st place and 2nd place ever. DreamWorks’ Disturbia earned $5.7 million in second place for its fourth weekend, so the difference between the two is $143.3 million, or 96.14%.
Written by Alvin Sargent, Spider-Man 3 stars Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace, Bryce Dallas Howard, James Cromwell and Rosemary Harris.
The only other new movie in wide release this weekend was Curtis Hanson’s poker drama Lucky You, starring Eric Bana and Drew Barrymore, and though it opened in more than 2,500 theaters, it wound up with just $2.5 million in the sixth spot.
Click here for the full box office estimates of the top 12 films.
