'HEAVEN' NO HELP TO BOX OFFICE OPENING OF SUMMER SEASON WEAK; SPOOKY 'WAX' FAILS TO SEAL THE DEAL.

Byline: Greg Hernandez Staff Writer

New releases ``Kingdom of Heaven,'' ``House of Wax'' and ``Crash'' failed to revive a slumping domestic box office, which for the first time since summer 2000 has suffered 11 consecutive down weekends.

The historical epic ``Heaven,'' directed by Ridley Scott and starring Orlando Bloom, earned an estimated $20 million to finish in first place, distributor 20th Century Fox said Sunday.

``It's a delightful number for me, but the market still seems soft,'' said Bruce Snyder, Fox's president of theatrical distribution. ``People were really hoping it would change the marketplace around.''

``Heaven'' also opened internationally in more than 100 markets and earned an estimated $56 million outside the U.S.

``It showed great strength and was No. 1 in every market,'' Snyder said.

But, with ``Heaven'' being Hollywood's first major release of the summer season, the domestic figure is considered low when compared to other summer kick-off films such as last year's ``Van Helsing'' ($51.7 million), 2003's ``X2: X-Men United'' ($85.5 million) and 2002's ``Spider-Man,'' which had a record-setting opening weekend of $114.8 million.

Overall, the top 12 films earned an estimated $76.8 million, down 23.7 percent from the same weekend a year ago. It marks 11 consecutive weekends that 2005 ticket sales totaled up lower than the comparable weekend a year earlier.

``Everything is down,'' said box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations Co. ``Expectations have run pretty high for the opening weekend in summer, the first weekend in May, but this marketplace just would not generate those types of numbers.''

Because recent horror films such as ``The Grudge,'' ``The Ring Two'' and ``The Amityville Horror'' had opened strongly, some box office prognosticators had predicted more from second-place ``House of Wax,'' which bowed with an estimated $12.2 million in ticket sales.

But Dan Fellman, president of domestic distribution for Warner Bros., said the opening was in line with studio expectations.

``We should continue to play fine for the next two weeks,'' said Fellman, who reported that more than half of the films' audience was under 21.

The weekend's third new wide release, ``Crash,'' finished in fourth place with an estimated $9.1 million in ticket sales. The Lions Gate release is a gritty ensemble drama starring Don Cheadle, Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon and Brendan Fraser.

Third-place ``The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' fell hard from first place, with a 57 percent drop in ticket sales. The Disney release earned an estimated $9.13 in ticket sales, for a cumulative gross of $35.1 million in two weeks.

Rounding out the top five was the Universal Pictures' drama ``The Interpreter,'' which continued to do steady business in its third weekend. Starring Sean Penn and Nicole Kidman, ``Interpreter'' took in an estimated $7.5 million for a cumulative gross of $54 million.

Sony's ``XXX: State of the Union'' saw business plummet 58 percent from an already dismal opening weekend to finish in sixth place with an estimated gross of just $5.4 million. The film has taken in a mere $20.8 million in two weeks.

Greg Hernandez, [phone]

greg.hernandez(at)dailynews.com

TOP MOVIES

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released today.

1. ``Kingdom of Heaven,'' $20 million.

2. ``House of Wax,'' $12.2 million.

3. ``The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy,'' $9.1 million.

4. ``Crash,'' $9.1 million.

5. ``The Interpreter,'' $7.5 million.

6. ``XXX: State of the Union,'' $5.4 million.

7. ``The Amityville Horror,'' $3.2 million.

8. ``Sahara,'' $3.1 million.

9. ``A Lot Like Love,'' $3 million.

10. ``Fever Pitch,'' $2 million.

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