‘X-Men’ Scores a Record Weekend

“X-Men: The Last Stand” marked the spot in Hollywood’s record books Monday, grossing $120.1 million over four days in the U.S. and Canada to shatter Memorial Day marks and bolster the industry’s box-office rebound.

The 20th Century Fox comic-based adventure about misunderstood mutant heroes staged one of the biggest premieres ever, trouncing previous films opening over the weekend that traditionally signals the start of the summer movie season. That includes “The Lost World: Jurassic Park,” which opened to $90.2 million in 1997 and “Shrek 2,” which grossed $95.6 million in its second week of release in 2004.

Third in the popular “X-Men” franchise, the movie surprised even optimistic Fox executives.

They had heavily promoted the Brett Ratner-directed film across parent News Corp.’s media empire, including through the popular MySpace.com social networking site. When the movie opened in the wee hours Friday morning, theaters were jammed with what is considered the core “X-Men” audience: young males.

Its $45.5-million take Friday was the second-highest single-day gross in history behind the $50 million by last year’s “Star Wars: Episode III Return of the Sith.”

By Sunday, the film had already grossed $103.1 million.

As the weekend wore on, families and older adults without children showed up, which Fox executives attributed in part to favorable reviews.

“It’s just remarkable, way beyond our expectations,” said Bruce Snyder, president of domestic distribution for the studio.

Hollywood’s overall domestic box office totaled $228.6 million for the four days, up from $225.5 million a year earlier. So far this year, the domestic box office has totaled about $3.5 billion, 6% more cash than at this time last year, said Exhibitor Relations President Paul Dergarabedian.

“Last year, all the talk was about how people had found other entertainment options than going to movies -- video games, computers, in-home theaters,” Dergarabedian said. “There’s a lot more optimism these days among the distributors, and even more among the movie theater owners. What this year is showing is that given the right product, and the right marketing, there’s still nothing like that 50-foot-wide screen.”

“The Da Vinci Code,” in its second week, dropped to No. 2 with a four-day gross of $43 million, bringing its domestic take to $145.5 million.

The film based on the best-selling novel of the same title and starring Tom Hanks has proved hugely popular around the world despite critical pans. Released by Sony Corp.’s Columbia Pictures, the movie is expected to have sold $500 million in tickets globally by the time next weekend arrives.

DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc.’s computer-animated “Over the Hedge” dropped from second place to third in its second week, taking in $35.3 million for a cumulative $84.4 million.

While entertaining “popcorn” movies dominated the box-office charts, the documentary “An Inconvenient Truth,” about former Vice President Al Gore’s efforts to raise awareness of global warming, posted big numbers in the four theaters in Los Angeles and New York where it premiered.

The Paramount Classics release brought in $365,787 over the four days, averaging $91,447 at each location. By contrast, “X-Men” averaged $32,554 per theater and “Da Vinci Code” $11,454.

“I’m through the moon,” exulted director Davis Guggenheim. “The fact that thousands of people are seeing this movie gives me great hope.”

“An Inconvenient Truth” will expand next into New York and Los Angeles suburbs as well as Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Dallas, Seattle, Toronto and Washington. It expands nationwide on July 4.

As for Hollywood’s morale, a strong slate of upcoming films is sparking optimism that the industry can rebound from last summer’s lethargic performance.

Next week will see the release of the romantic comedy “The Break Up,” with Pixar Animation Studios’ “Cars” opening on June 9. Warner Bros.’ “Superman Returns” opens on June 30, with Walt Disney Co.’s “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” scheduled for July 7.

“X-Men,” Fox’s Snyder said, “bodes well for the movies in general. Give them a good experience and they’ll come back again.”

Fox has said that the film, shot in Canada, cost $165 million when tax credits are factored in, although others with knowledge of the production have pegged it closer to $180 million.

Whatever the expense, cost appears to be of little concern to Fox given the payoff. When asked about the possibility of more “X-Men” films, Snyder replied: “We’d start another one today if we could.”

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Holiday box office

Preliminary results (in millions) based on studio projections for U.S. and Canada.

*--* Movie 4-day gross Total X-Men: The Last Stand $120.1 $120.1

The Da Vinci Code 43.0 $145.5

Over the Hedge 35.3 84.4

Mission: Impossible III 8.6 115.8

Poseidon 7.0 46.6

RV 5.3 57.2

See No Evil 3.2 9.2

Just My Luck 2.3 13.9

United 93 1.1 29.9

An American Haunting 0.9 14.9

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Industry total

*--* 4-day gross Change (In millions) from 2005

$228.6 1.38% YTD gross Change (In billions) from 2005

$3.5 6.0%

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Source: Exhibitor Relations Co.

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Times staff writer Tina Daunt contributed to this report.