Brian Damage
05-05-2007, 01:15 PM
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Spider-Man 3" sold a record $59 million worth of tickets during its first day of release across North America, and is on track to break the industry mark for an opening weekend, according to estimates issued on Saturday by the film's distributor.
The highly anticipated superhero saga opened in the United States and Canada on Friday, having already begun its international campaign on May 1.
The North American one-day and opening-weekend records were held by Walt Disney Co.'s July 2006 smash "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," with respective sums of $55.8 million and $135.6 million.
"Based on the first day's performance, the studio believes the film will deliver in the range of $135 million to $145 million in North America for its first three days of release," Columbia Pictures said in a statement.
The Sony Corp.-owned studio will issue three-day estimates early on Sunday.
The first "Spider-Man," released in 2002, earned $39.4 million on its first day, $114.8 million on its first weekend, and $403 million by the end of its North American run. Two years later, "Spider-Man 2" finished with $373 million. It opened on a Wednesday -- rather than the traditional Friday -- with $40.4 million, and earned $88.2 million during the subsequent weekend.
Overseas business is similarly brisk, with Friday sales estimated at $45 million. A Columbia spokesman did not have information on the foreign earnings to date.
All three films star Tobey Maguire as the web-slinging crime fighter, and Kirsten Dunst as his girlfriend. Sam Raimi directed the trilogy.
The highly anticipated superhero saga opened in the United States and Canada on Friday, having already begun its international campaign on May 1.
The North American one-day and opening-weekend records were held by Walt Disney Co.'s July 2006 smash "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," with respective sums of $55.8 million and $135.6 million.
"Based on the first day's performance, the studio believes the film will deliver in the range of $135 million to $145 million in North America for its first three days of release," Columbia Pictures said in a statement.
The Sony Corp.-owned studio will issue three-day estimates early on Sunday.
The first "Spider-Man," released in 2002, earned $39.4 million on its first day, $114.8 million on its first weekend, and $403 million by the end of its North American run. Two years later, "Spider-Man 2" finished with $373 million. It opened on a Wednesday -- rather than the traditional Friday -- with $40.4 million, and earned $88.2 million during the subsequent weekend.
Overseas business is similarly brisk, with Friday sales estimated at $45 million. A Columbia spokesman did not have information on the foreign earnings to date.
All three films star Tobey Maguire as the web-slinging crime fighter, and Kirsten Dunst as his girlfriend. Sam Raimi directed the trilogy.