Ancient epic "300" leads worldwide box office

Ancient epic "300" leads worldwide box office



Reuters


March 18, 2007



by Dean Goodman




LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The brave Spartan soldiers of "300" enjoyed a one-sided victory at the North American box office for a second weekend, making light work of critically lambasted new challenges from Sandra Bullock and Chris Rock.

According to studio estimates issued on Sunday, Warner Bros. Pictures' war epic sold $31.2 million worth of tickets in the three days beginning on March 16, taking its 10-day haul to $127.4 million. The Time Warner Inc.-owned studio expects the film to hit $200 million.

"300" was also No. 1 overseas, earning $15.6 million from chart-topping stands in 13 countries, mostly in Asia. The foreign total stands at $24.6 million, with Greece supplying $7 million, not surprising given the film's setting. It opens next weekend in such markets as Britain, France, Spain and Mexico.

The movie, which cost about $65 million to make, stars Scottish actor Gerard Butler as the king of the Spartans who leads 300 of his men to a glorious death against the Persians at the Battle of Thermopylae.

Bullock recorded the best opening of her career with the psychological thriller "Premonition," which opened at No. 3 with a better-than-expected $18 million.

The actress plays a woman whose husband keeps dying and mysteriously reappearing. The film's distributor, Columbia Pictures, had hoped the $20 million movie would open in the mid-teens. Women comprised two-thirds of the audience, and 61 percent of viewers were aged 25 and older, said the Sony Corp.-owned studio.



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