'40-Year-Old Virgin' Retains No. 1 Spot
Aug 28, 10:35 PM (ET)

By DAVID GERMAIN

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Steve Carell's second time at the top of the box office was almost as good as the first. "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," starring Carell as a middle-aged man who has never had sex, remained the No. 1 movie with $16.4 million, a strong hold from its opening weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Terry Gilliam's "The Brothers Grimm," a fantasy starring Matt Damon and Heath Ledger as the 19th century fairy-tale siblings, debuted in second place with $15.1 million.

"The Cave," an underground monster movie featuring Morris Chestnut, Piper Perabo and Cole Hauser, opened weakly at No. 6 with $6.2 million.

The weekend's other new wide release - the romance "Undiscovered," featuring Ashlee Simpson and Pell James as gal pals who fabricate media buzz to help a friend's music career - flopped with just $690,000, finishing far out of the top 10.

A movie slump continued, with the top-12 films taking in $82.8 million, down 2.5 percent from the same weekend last year.

Hollywood is having its worst year since the late 1990s, with summer attendance expected to come in 12 percent behind last year, according to box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

There have been bright spots amid the slump, notably the racy R-rated comedies "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" and "Wedding Crashers," which are holding well on the strength of good reviews and word of mouth.

"Wedding Crashers," starring Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn as buddies who intrude on strangers' nuptials to pick up women, remained the No. 5 film with $6.25 million, lifting its seven-week total to $187.7 million.

The release of "The Brothers Grimm" was delayed for a year as Gilliam feuded over the final version with brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein, the heads of Miramax Films, whose Dimension banner released the movie.

"The Brothers Grimm" is among a rush of long-delayed Miramax movies now being released as the Weinsteins prepare to depart Disney-owned Miramax for a new film company they have formed.

For Gilliam ("The Fisher King,""Twelve Monkeys"), it was his first film since 1998's "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.""Brothers Grimm" got mixed reviews at best, though.

"It's a respectable opening," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations. "You can't underestimate the following that Terry Gilliam has."

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," $16.4 million.

2. "The Brothers Grimm," $15.1 million.

3. "Red Eye," $10.4 million.

4. "Four Brothers," $7.8 million.

5. "Wedding Crashers," $6.25 million.

6. "The Cave," $6.2 million.

7. "March of the Penguins," $4.6 million.

8. "The Skeleton Key," $4.4 million.

9. "Valiant," $3.35 million.

10. "The Dukes of Hazzard," $3.05 million

------------------------------------------------------------
Second Weekend in Release
Labor Day Weekend
Monday, 05 September 2005

Grimm Slips to #5


'Transporter' Tops Labor Day Box Office
Sep 5, 6:10 PM (ET)

By DAVID GERMAIN

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Jason Statham delivered a bigger box-office package this time, with his action sequel "Transporter 2" taking in $20.25 million to debut as the top weekend movie.

The followup's solid pay day over the four-day Labor Day weekend was more than twice the haul for "The Transporter," which took in $9.1 million in its three-day opening weekend in October 2002.

"Transporter 2" took over the No. 1 slot from "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," which slipped to second place with $16.6 million after two weekends on top, according to studio estimates Sunday. Holding strongly, "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" raised its total domestic gross to $71.9 million.

The well-reviewed "The Constant Gardener," starring Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz in a John le Carre suspense thriller, premiered in third place with $10.8 million, a solid opening given that it played in just 1,346 theaters, nearly 2,000 fewer than "Transporter 2."

On the flip side were two new wide releases soundly trashed by critics and generally ignored by audiences.

"Underclassman," an action comedy starring Nick Cannon as a cop who goes undercover at a posh high school to investigate a murder, flopped with just $3.1 million.

"A Sound of Thunder," with Edward Burns and Ben Kingsley in an adaptation of Ray Bradbury's sci-fi story about time travelers who disrupt evolution on a trip to visit dinosaurs, bombed with a paltry $1.15 million.

Hollywood ended its worst summer for movie attendance since 1997 on a positive note, with overall revenues rising during the long weekend. The top 12 movies took in $96.4 million, up 16 percent from Labor Day weekend last year.

"It's somewhat ironic in the final weekend of one of the worst summers ever that we have a strong showing," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. "Hopefully, this sets a positive tone heading into the fall and holiday season."

Domestic grosses from early May through Labor Day were down 9 percent compared to summer 2004, according to Exhibitor Relations. Factoring in higher ticket prices, attendance was off 12 percent.

Labor Day typically is a slow time at theaters, yet "Transporter 2" had a record debut for the period, beating the previous high of $18.4 million held by "Jeepers Creepers 2" over the same weekend in 2003.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Monday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Tuesday.

1. "Transporter 2," $20.25 million.

2. "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," $16.6 million.

3. "The Constant Gardener," $10.8 million.

4. "Red Eye," $9.3 million.

5. "The Brothers Grimm," $7.9 million.

6. "Four Brothers," $6.4 million.

7. "Wedding Crashers," $5.8 million.

8. "March of the Penguins," $5.4 million.

9. "The Skeleton Key," $4.1 million.

10. "The Cave," $3.7 million.

-------------------------------------------------------------
Third Weekend in Release
Monday, 12 September 2005

(Associated Press) Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters,
according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "The Exorcism of Emily Rose," $30.2 million.

2. "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," $7.9 million.

3. "Transporter 2," $7.2 million.

4. "The Constant Gardener," $4.8 million.

5. "Red Eye," $4.6 million.

6. "The Man," $4.0 million.

7. "The Brothers Grimm," $3.3 million.

8. "Wedding Crashers," $3.2 million.

9. "Four Brothers," $2.9 million.

10. "March of the Penguins," $2.5 million.

11. "The Skeleton Key," $1.6 million.

12. "The Cave," $1.3 million.