Date: 30th October 2000

It Wasn't The Witch-ing Hour, After All


The Blair Witch sequel gave up the ghost over the weekend, failing to open in the top spot at the box office as most analysts had predicted. Instead, Universal's Meet the Parents remained at No. 1 for the fourth straight week, earning $15.1 million and bringing its total to date past the $100-million mark. (Today's Daily Variety noted that it was the first comedy since 1996's The Birdcage to remain in first place for four straight weeks.) Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 was in second place at $13.1 million, despite opening on 3,317 screens. It is expected to fade fast. As Robert Bucksbaum, president of Reel Source Inc., told Bloomberg News: "If a horror film isn't going to win on Halloween week, then when is it going to?" Meanwhile, Disney's Remember the Titans continued to show strong legs, remaining in third place with $8 million to bring its total to $87.7 million. Bedazzled, which opened in second place a week ago, fell 41 percent to $7.7 million, to wind up in fourth place. The debut of the kids' flick The Little Vampire brought in $5.5 million, putting it in sixth place, while the new Lucky Numbers starring John Travolta wound up an unlucky No. 7 with just $4.6 million. "We're definitely disappointed," Rob Friedman, vice chairman of Paramount motion-pictures group, told the Associated Press about Numbers. '"We felt it was the sort of offbeat, dark comedy that audiences would embrace, and they didn't." The top ten films for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations: 1. Meet the Parents, $15.1 million; 2. Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, $13.1 million; 3. Remember the Titans, $8 million; 4. Bedazzled, $7.7 million; 5. Pay It Forward, $6.9 million; 6. The Little Vampire, $5.5 million; 7. Lucky Numbers, $4.6 million; 8. The Contender, $2.5 million; 9. The Legend of Drunken Master, $2.3 million; 10. Best in Show, $1.8 million.

Source: Studio Briefing