Movie Scares Up Some Big Numbers
Scary Movie, the new Wayans Brothers horror movie spoof, scared up plenty of business this weekend, breaking box-office records, reports CBS News Early Show Contributor Laurie Hibberd.
No one saw it coming. Scary Movie had the second biggest opening this year behind Mission: Impossible 2. Not even Miramax, the producer of Scary Movie, thought the movie would open so well. They had estimated that it would bring in $25 to $27 million.
Here are the numbers according to Hollywood.com:
- Scary movie, $43 million
- The Perfect Storm, $27 million
- The Patriot, $16 million
- The Kid, $13 million
- Chicken Run, $10 million
"It walks the thinnest line as far as taste goes," says Hibberd, who admits that she laughed her way through the movie.
In other box office news:
- Me, Myself & Irene has turned out to be a box-office disappointment, even with the star power of Jim Carrey. His Hollywood status and his $20-million-a-movie salary is at stake, and the film that determines the outcome will be The Grinch, which is set for a Christmas release.
- Mel Gibson is now sharing top billing in the marketing campaign for The Patriot. Heath Ledger, who plays his son, is being touted as Gibson's costar, and Hibberd says that's because "the kids see the movies in the summertime. They wanted to make it more appealing to younger people. (Gibson's) not bringing in the 20s all of a sudden."
- There's better news for George Clooney, star of The Perfect Storm, which has taken in more than $100 million so far. "This is his best movie ever," Hibberd observes. "This is the movie that's putting him at the forefront. This is not the George Clooney we're used to seeing. He's not the romantic lead... He's not all that likable a character."