Weekend Box Office: The "Mind" Succumbs To The "Ring"

[James Harvey]

Lord of the Rings seems unstoppable as it sits on top of the box offce heap for it's third straight weekend, raking in just over $23 million. With this take - the movie has made it over the $200 million mark. Also, Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone has just creeped over the $300 million mark and is still trucking along. Here's the rundown:

1. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Rings - $23,000,000 ($205.5 mill)
2. Beautiful Mind - $17,029,000 ($38.2 mill)
3. Ocean's Eleven - $11,765,000 ($152.7 mill)
4. Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius - $9,200,000 ($62.5 mill)
5. The Royal Tenebaums - $8,776,000 ($21 mill)
6. Ali - $7,600,000 ($50.1 mill)
7. Vanilla Sky - $7,400,000 ($81.4 mill)
8. Kate & Leopold - $6,700,000 ($31.1 mill)
9. Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone - $6,100,000 ($300.6 mill)
10. Monsters, Inc. - $4,024,000 ($244.8 mill)

While not in the top 10, Jim Carrey's The Majestic actually isn't doing all that bad, grossing $24 million dollars in three weeks. Sur e- that's not a typical big Jim Carrey film - but people are seeing this movie. Lord of the Rings probably has one, two at the most, more weeks at the top of the box office before some big movies start moving in.

[Overkill of ASE]

All it needs to do now is stay on top for 50 straight weeks, and then it'll have a chance to dethrone Titanic!

Which may never happen, thus making this extra sad because Titanic does not deserve any honor whatsoever.

[Vin]

Originally posted by Overkill of ASE
All it needs to do now is stay on top for 50 straight weeks, and then it'll have a chance to dethrone Titanic!

Which may never happen, thus making this extra sad because Titanic does not deserve any honor whatsoever.

Yeah, and if "LOTR" isn't nominated for an Oscar for "Best Picture" then I'd be pretty annoyed. I mean, look how many Oscars "Titanic" won!

Anyway, I'm glad "LOTR" is still top dawg.

[James Harvey]

Yeah - Titanic is a horrid movie. There is a chance that LOTR could settle down at around 420 mill or so, and stay there for a few weeks - that would surely bring the gross up to $400 - $500 million. While it is unlikely considering today's market - it would be a nice change of pace.

[Darashinai]

*drools over Legolas*

[Overkill of ASE]

Getting nominated for Best Picture, I think LotR will. There's too much momentum behind it.

The problem is winning it, though. Accroding to Drudge, all the critics are orgasming over this other film "In the Bedroom", and it's being touted as the early shoe-in for the winner. I hope this rumor's unfounded, but who knows? If "Titanic" can beat "As Good as it Gets", and if "Shakespeare in Love" can beat "Saving Private Ryan", then any crappy film can beat LotR.

[James Harvey]

I've heard about that "In The Bedroom" movie. I heard that only Sissy Spacek's performance was any good, but that hasn't stopped bad movies being nominated before (cough*chocolat*cough).

[Maxie Zeus]

You know, I thoroughly despised FotR but I'm such a Tolkien nut that I'm actually glad to see it cruising along so well.

As for the Oscar talk, I lost all respect for the Academy (such as I ever had) years ago. If they want to give the Best Picture to "Pearl Harbor" it wouldn't bother me. :rolleyes:

[Sheamon]

Add in the world wide box office, and this movie alone has already paid for the entire trilogy's production, maybe even the marketting as well. Things are looking very good :D

[James Harvey]

I think the foreign gross is just about equal tot he domestic gross, bring the total around $400 - 450 mill, likely. Imagine the profit that New Line will make with the next two movies. With only needing to spend about $100 - 150 on the sequels, NEW LINE looks to make a nice $300 - 400 profit. That must be something they'll be happy with.

[Maxie Zeus]

Originally posted by Dick Grayson
I think the foreign gross is just about equal tot he domestic gross, bring the total around $400 - 450 mill, likely. Imagine the profit that New Line will make with the next two movies. With only needing to spend about $100 - 150 on the sequels, NEW LINE looks to make a nice $300 - 400 profit. That must be something they'll be happy with.

Actually, I think New Line sold off the foreign rights to help finance the movie. That is why it doesn't need to recoup the full $300 million+ in order to make a profit, but it means foreign rentals can't be factored into the equation.

I think that's right. But I could easily be wrong.

[pencilsharp]

Just as well, Max. Who the heck on this side of the drink wants a Euro anyways? ;)
Anyway, I'm proud to say that I didn't contribute one red cent to LotR's hypefest, just as I didn't for SW:Ep 1 or Hairy Potty or any of those other overblown time-wasters.
But, I might just plunk down for a matinee of Spider-Man...
Cheap little so&so, hanh?

[James Harvey]

New Line sold the foreign rights? Well - that makes sense, then. The LOTR trilogy is a risky venture for a small company like NEW LINE, but they are making the best of it.

[The Mad Hatter]

Sounds like it was a good call, considering that nobody else would be crazy enough to make three seperate movies (Jackson was hoping for two, and was blown away when he got offered three). Looks like, at this rate, the production budget for the entire trilogy will be paid off with the first flick. Yes!

[Joe Tully]

By the way, many of you might have seen this already, but LOTR did win Best Picture at the AFI awards. Hopefully, this bodes well for its chances at Oscar night.

It's nice to see Hollywood handing out more awards. We didn't have enough already. :rolleyes:

[Spider-Man]

What? Hollywood giving out too many awards? Noooo....:)

I enjoyed the first one, although being an avid LOTR fan, I didn't like some of the tweaks and changes. The performance I liked most in the movie was Ian McKellan. As far as I am concerned - he is Gandolf! Does this mean the old fashioned Hollywood blockbusters are back in style?

[spectre316]

Royal Tenenbaums! Royal Tenenbaums! Royal Tenenbaums! It's such a great, great movie. I'm a fan of Wes Anderson, the director (also director of films like Rushmore and Bottle Rocket). It jumped from 12th place to 5th place... very, very impressive.

...that could be the fact that it had hundreds of theaters added to the overall theater number.

[James Harvey]

The Royal Tenenbaums, which I'm dieing to see, is playing in only 752 theatres, yet each theatre averaged almost $12,000 - meaning most shows were sold out. It was the #2 highest grossing movie in NY, behind LOTR.

[spectre316]

Dick Grayson, if you liked Rushmore and/or Bottle Rocket, you'll love this so much. I went to the opening of the show in Cleveland (I live an hour away) and it was sold out. Amazing show.

[James Harvey]

Rushmore is one of my favorite movies. Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson are geniuses. The recent article on these two in PREMIERE magazine was really good and fascinating. I'm hoping to catch it this week! (fingers crossed)

[spectre316]

Hm, random quote from Rushmore:

Herman Blume: She's my Rushmore.
Max Fisher: I know. She was mine too.