“The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,” $4.15 million. “Barbershop 2: Back in Business,” $15.6 million.Ĩ. Final figures will be released Tuesday.Ģ. In narrow release, the murder thriller “Highwaymen,” starring Jim Caviezel, debuted weakly with $203,000 in 111 theaters for an average of $1,829.Įstimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co.

He’s just so accessible to all audiences. “And I think one thing I would say about Adam, he’s just such a likable guy. “I think people were excited to see Adam and Drew paired up again,” said Rory Bruer, Sony head of distribution. Though many critics trashed “50 First Dates,” the movie earned its share of positive press, with some reviewers taken in by the story’s sweetness and Sandler and Barrymore’s chemistry.Īlmost half of the audience was 25 or older, a more mature crowd than normally turns out to see Sandler. The movie is positioned to become the first released in 2004 to top that mark. With many people off work Monday for President’s Day, “50 First Dates” should come out of the long weekend about halfway to the $100 million level. Playing in 3,591 theaters, “50 First Dates” averaged a strong $11,417 a cinema. What makes 50 First Dates special is that it spends the entire movie showing how the couples. Sandler plays a womanizer smitten by Barrymore, an accident victim who forgets the previous day’s memories each morning, forcing Sandler to dream up new ways for the two to meet and fall in love. and are now free to live passionate, obstacle-free lives forever. For a lot of couples, this was their Valentine entertainment,” said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. Sandler’s main audience is males in their teens and 20s, who turned out in force, but women made up 57 percent of the crowds on the strength of Barrymore and the movie’s romantic theme, distributor Sony reported.Īnd the Valentine’s weekend sealed the deal with audiences. “50 First Dates” was a reunion for Sandler and Barrymore, who starred in “The Wedding Singer,” which opened over Valentine’s weekend in 1998. The overall box office was down, with the top 12 movies grossing $107.8 million, off 13 percent from the same weekend last year. The previous weekend’s top film, “Barbershop 2: Back in Business,” slipped to second place with $15.6 million, bringing its 10-day total to $44.1 million. If the estimates hold, it would be the second-biggest February opening ever, behind the $58 million debut of “Hannibal” in 2001 and just ahead of last year’s “Daredevil” at $40.3 million.

Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore’s romance “50 First Dates” proved an irresistible draw for the Valentine’s weekend date crowd, taking in $41 million to debut as the top movie, according to studio estimates Sunday.

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