‘Next Friday’ Arrives During Holiday Weekend

Every day was Friday over the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend as “Next Friday” dominated the box-office charts, pulling in way ahead of other national arrivals like “Girl, Interrupted,” “The Hurricane” and “Supernova.”

The approximately $17-million holiday weekend tally for “Next Friday,” starring and produced by Ice Cube, is all the more impressive given that New Line’s low-budget comedy sequel debuted on only about 1,000 screens, averaging more than $15,000 per screen for the four days.

Bolstered by a top-selling soundtrack, “Next Friday” has racked up about $21.5 million since its debut Wednesday, which is twice what the film cost and almost as much as the original “Friday,” released in 1995, grossed in its entire run: $27.5 million.

Unlike the original film, which was plagued by violence in theaters, there was only one incident--a shooting Sunday night in Torrance--related to “Next Friday,” which, according to a New Line spokesman, crossed over to a broader audience. The company opened the film in urban areas and college towns; “Friday” was a huge video hit with young, hip audiences.

Of the other new national releases, both “The Hurricane” and “Girl, Interrupted” gained a toehold in theaters with their respective audiences. “Hurricane’s” star, Denzel Washington, proved a potent draw for older urban and suburban audiences, bringing in about $10.7 million in the first four days of wide release on 1,465 screens.

“Girl, Interrupted” spread out to 1,902 theaters and was of interest mainly to its core audience--young women--over the holiday weekend, earning an estimated $9.6 million.

“Supernova,” which opened Friday, was of interest mainly to sci-fi fans; it brought in a modest $6.6 million in 2,280 theaters for the weekend.

Holding best among the long-running films was last week’s champ, “Stuart Little,” which on Saturday became the 18th film released in 1999 to cross the $100-million threshold, exactly one month since it was released. Benefiting from the school holiday on Monday, “Stuart” took in an estimated $12.6 million for a total to date just below $110 million. Also crossing the $100-million line is “The Green Mile,” which reached it on Sunday after six weeks in theaters. During the four-day period it earned a hearty $8.7 million, bringing it to $103 million to date; for Hanks it’s his 10th film to surpass $100 million. The space spoof “Galaxy Quest” is capitalizing on good word of mouth and a dearth of comedies in theaters. The film took in $8 million over the four-day weekend and $47 million so far.

Dropping out of the Top 10 is “Magnolia,” director Paul Thomas Anderson’s three-hour ramble in the San Fernando Valley. The ensemble drama doesn’t seem to have strong legs, dropping about 40% in its second wider-release weekend.

“Cider House Rules” is doing comparatively better with a minuscule drop of less than 10% from last weekend. “Cider” squeezed out $3.3 million over the four-day weekend for a total of almost $13 million so far.

Next to “Next Friday,” perhaps the most impressive totals are for the Imax “Fantasia/2000.” Playing in only 75 theaters worldwide since Jan. 1, the film has brought in an estimated $13.6 million, including $3.3 million over the four-day weekend. It’s averaging $42,500 per screen. With sensational numbers like these, Disney is contemplating expanding the four-month limited Imax run.