`THE WATERBOY' CARRIES THE BALL IN RECORD-SETTING WIN.Byline: Dave McNary Daily News Staff Writer Adam Sandler's ``The Waterboy'' scored a record-setting victory at the nation's multiplexes with an astounding a·stound tr.v. a·stound·ed, a·stound·ing, a·stounds To astonish and bewilder. See Synonyms at surprise. [From Middle English astoned, past participle of astonen, $39.1 million at 2,664 theaters to dominate the nation's weekend box office during Friday-Sunday, studio sources said Sunday. The results beat the mark for a November weekend opening, topping the $37.8 million debut of Jim Carrey's hit ``Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls'' in 1995. Disney's comedy, with Sandler as a football team's gofer-turned-star, came in far above industry expectations. ``We figured `The Waterboy' would do $17 million to $19 million, but no one thought Adam Sandler would be the next Jim Carrey “James Carrey” redirects here. For the murder conspirator, see James Carey. James Eugene Carrey (born January 17, 1962) is a Canadian actor and comedian. ,'' said Robert Bucksbaum, president of the Reel Source forecasting service. ``The studio really pushed hard to draw teens and people in Middle America Middle America 1 A region of southern North America comprising Mexico, Central America, and sometimes the West Indies. Middle American adj. & n. .'' Bucksbaum said the studio took advantage of Sandler's drawing power from ``The Wedding Singer,'' which grossed $80 million domestically, and the popularity of comedies such as ``Rush Hour'' and ``There's Something About Mary.'' ``It seems as if everyone is in the mood for comedies,'' he added. Disney distribution chief Phil Barlow bar·low n. An inexpensive, one- or two-bladed pocketknife. [After Barlow, the family name of its makers, two brothers in Sheffield, England.] noted that Saturday's $16.1 million total was the highest single-day gross ever for a Disney movie. He also noted that the comedy drew well among women, who constituted 40 percent of the audience. ``The public was just salivating for this film, but it still beat our internal estimates,'' Barlow said. ``Adam Sandler is the motion picture comedy star of the moment.'' ``The Waterboy'' cost a modest $19 million to make and should top $100 million domestically, making it massively profitable for Disney. The entertainment giant had seen its last two releases - ``Beloved'' and ``Holy Man'' - perform poorly, and it recently placed part of the blame on those projects for its 24 percent decline in quarterly earnings. ``The Waterboy'' took in more than double its nearest rival, ``The Siege,'' with $15 million at 2,541 theaters. The performance was in line with expectations for 20th Century Fox's $70 million thriller, which depicts the U.S. military taking over New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. to thwart terrorists. Arab-American and Muslim groups have protested the project, which stars Denzel Washington Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. (born December 28, 1954) is a two-time Academy Award and Golden Globe Award-winning American actor and director. He has garnered much critical acclaim for his portrayals of several real-life figures, such as Steve Biko, Malcolm X, Rubin "Hurricane" and Bruce Willis Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is an American actor and singer. He came to fame in the late 1980s and has since retained a career as both a Hollywood leading man and a supporting actor, in particular for his role as John McClane in the Die Hard series. , over concerns about negative ethnic stereotypes. The top two movies accounted for half of all grosses with overall box office at $108 million, or 25 percent ahead of the same weekend last year, as the industry keeps up its impressive 1998 performance. Year-to-date business has topped $5.5 billion for a 10 percent gain over the same period in 1997. ``The domestic box office continues to astound a·stound tr.v. a·stound·ed, a·stound·ing, a·stounds To astonish and bewilder. See Synonyms at surprise. [From Middle English astoned, past participle of astonen, ,'' said analyst Arthur Rockwell of Drake & Co., noting the heavier focus on what had traditionally been slow periods for moviegoing such as the fall. ``It's as if summer doesn't end anymore.'' New Line's third weekend of ``Pleasantville'' finished a distant but respectable third with $6 million at 1,761 sites as it dropped just 13 percent from Halloween weekend. DreamWorks' sixth weekend of ``Antz'' made an impressive comeback, rising 20 percent to $5.4 million at 2,604 screens and has now grossed nearly $75 million overall. Final figures for this weekend will be released today. Top movies Here are estimated grosses at North American North American named after North America. North American blastomycosis see North American blastomycosis. North American cattle tick see boophilusannulatus. theaters for Friday through Sunday: 1. ``The Waterboy,'' $39.1 million. 2. ``The Siege,'' $15 million. 3. ``Pleasantville,'' $6 million. 4. ``Antz,'' $5.4 million. 5. ``The Wizard of Oz Wizard of Oz reaches and departs from Oz in circus balloon. [Children’s Lit.: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz] See : Ballooning Wizard of Oz false wizard takes up residence in Emerald City. [Am. Lit. ,'' $4.9 million. 6. ``Living Out Loud,'' $4.5 million. 7. ``Practical Magic,'' $4.1 million. 8. ``John Carpenter's Vampires,'' $4 million. 9. ``Rush Hour,'' $3.5 million. 10. ``Belly,'' $3.3 million. CAPTION(S): box Box |
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