Disney's "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" remained atop the box office
in North America for the third straight weekend with an estimated take of
US$20.2 million over the three-day period, according to preliminary box office
figures released yesterday.
The first weekend of 2008 kept the up momentum at the box office that
Hollywood has seen in the past few weeks. Although there was only one new wide
release in theaters this weekend, the top 12 movies took in 124 million dollars
collectively, up more than 18 percent over the same period a year ago.
The "National Treasure" sequel starring Nicolas Cage has sold nearly US$171
million since its release before the Christmas holiday, according to the Los
Angeles-based box office tracking firm Media By Numbers.
Will Smith's sci-fi thriller "I Am Legend" held the No. 2 spot for the
weekend with US$16.4 million in ticket sales. The Warner Bros. film has taken in
a whopping 229 million dollars since opening four weeks ago.
Independent film "Juno" from Fox Searchlight edged up from last weekend's
fifth place to the No. 3 with US$16.2 million, while the computer-animated
"Alvin and the Chipmunks" from 20th Century Fox fell from second to No. 4 with
16 million dollars.
Warner Bros.' "One Missed Call," the Hollywood remake of a 2004Japanese
horror film, debuted in No. 5 with US$14 million this weekend. The film, which
features several college students who receive cell phone calls that predict
their death, is targeted mainly at younger audiences.
