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Box Office Review: Biggest Summer Ever!
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Superbad became the first movie since late May to win back-to-back weekends, owing as much to a weak slate of openers as to its own relative strength. The Judd Apatow-produced dick montage hauled in 18 million bucks and helped push the summer box office to a record 4.003 billion dollars. It's the first 4 billion dollar summer ever, though higher ticket prices (and not increased admissions) account for that big, shiny number.
The Bourne Ultimatum kept up its strong pace, adding an additional 12.3 million dollars (185.1M) and claiming the top spot in the Bourne series. Moreover, it's welcome proof that an action movie needn't be an exercise in turgid, brainless crap to draw an audience (see Rush Hour 3). After that, it was the aforementioned turd Rush Hour 3 with 12.2 million (109M) and the surprising Mr. Bean's Holiday which debuted with a strong 10.1 million.
Some thought War might challenge Superbad for the weekend crown but it only totaled 10 million. The Nanny Diaries was the latest Weinstein failure, making a meager 7.8 million. After that it was all hold-overs: Simpsons (4.4M, 173.4M), Stardust (3.9M, 26.4M), Hairspray (3.4M, 107.4M) and Invasion (3.1M, 11.5M). In limited release, Resurrecting the Champ (1.8M), Illegal Tender (1.4M) and September Dawn (1.0M) all did mediocre business, while Dedication ($6000 per) and Deep Water ($10,850 per) both performed well on a few screens.
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