Fonda, Lopez Tops at Box Office

(AP)  Moviegoers rewarded Jane Fonda's return to the big screen by making "Monster-in-Law" the weekend's top movie, though the comedy was short of a monster hit.

The total box office slump continued for a 12th straight week, but the force is expected to return next week when the final chapter in the Star Wars saga "Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith," hits theaters.

"Monster-in-Law," which pits Jennifer Lopez against Fonda as her villainous prospective mother-in-law, took in $24 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. Fonda's first major film role in 15 years was also Lopez's strongest box office opening performance, ahead of 2002's "Maid in Manhattan," which opened with $18.7 million.

J.Lo versus J.Fo earned $3 million more than another comedic take on familial combat, "Kicking & Screaming," in which Will Ferrell faces off against his father and youth soccer coaching rival Robert Duvall.

The weekend's other major opener, the Jet Li action flick "Unleashed," took in a respectable $10.6 million. Last week's box office champ, the Orlando Bloom Crusades epic "Kingdom of Heaven," slipped to fourth place with $9.6 million, a 51 percent drop from its opening weekend.

The total box office take was down 6.7 percent from the same weekend last year, when "Troy" debuted with $46.8 million, but it was up 21.7 percent from last weekend.

"I'm encouraged by these numbers," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. "This shows there is an audience out there. As we head into the week of 'Star Wars,' this is definitely a positive-looking marketplace."

Studio executives said they were not worried with the box office results so far. "Star Wars" will be followed by several big films, including the animated "Madagascar" and the Adam Sandler-Chris Rock remake of "The Longest Yard."

"There's nothing wrong with our business that a good movie won't fix," said David Tuckerman, head of distribution for New Line Cinema, which released "Monster-in-Law." "'Star Wars' will jump-start us."

None of the major studios are planning any wide releases next weekend, figuring that any new movie will be buried by the sixth and final episode of George Lucas' influential sci-fi saga.

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