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"Stomp," Oscar contenders dominate box office
2007-01-21
Urban dance drama "Stomp the Yard" narrowly retained the lead at the North American box office on Sunday, while Oscar hopefuls "Pan's Labyrinth" and "The Queen" leaped into the top 10, two days before nominations for Hollywood's highest honors are unveiled. "Stomp" earned $13.3 million in the three days beginning on Friday, distributor Columbia Pictures said. It was followed by former champ "Night at the Museum" with $13 million. The weekend's sole new wide release, the horror remake "The Hitcher," opened at No. 4 with a disappointing $8.2 million, having been viewed by pundits as a contender for the top slot. "Stomp" stars actor-dancer Columbus Short as a college student who vies for the affections of a girl (Meagan Good) by entering a "stepping" competition. The high-energy dance style has been popular for decades among black fraternities and sororities. The film, which cost about $14 million to make, has earned $41.6 million after 10 days, and is on track to reach $60 million, said the Sony Corp (NYSE:SNE).-owned studio. The Ben Stiller comedy "Night at the Museum" has earned $205.8 million after five weeks, said Twentieth Century Fox, a unit of News Corp. "HITCHER" STRANDED "The Hitcher," a remake of the 1986 cult horror starring Rutger Hauer, features Sean Bean in the villainous title role. The Rogue Pictures release marked the feature directing debut of music video veteran Dave Meyers. The studio said the opening tally was "just OK," having hoped for an opening in the $10 million-$11 million range. Rogue is a unit of General Electric Co.'s Focus Features. Elsewhere, "Dreamgirls" rose one to No. 3 with $8.7 million on the heels of its Golden Globe Award last Monday for best comedy or musical. The Motown-inspired musical drama has earned $78.1 million to date. It was released by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc. Columbia's Will Smith drama "The Pursuit of Happyness" dropped two to No. 5 with $6.7 million; its total rose to $145.6 million. The Spanish-language film "Pan's Labyrinth" jumped 11 places to No. 7 with $4.7 million, after widening to 609 theaters from 194 last weekend. Its total stands at $10.2 million. Mexican director Guillermo del Toro's violent wartime fairy tale is among the nine films vying for one of five slots in the foreign-language Oscar category. It was released by Time Warner Inc.'s arthouse arm Picturehouse. "The Queen," starring Dame Helen Mirren as the British monarch, earned $3.7 million, sharing the No. 8 slot with "Children of Men." Mirren is the favorite to take the actress Oscar, having already won most key awards. Released by Walt Disney Co.'s Miramax Films, "The Queen" widened to 2,333 theaters from 344 last week, when it was No. 24; it has earned $35.9 million to date. Oscar nominations will be unveiled on Tuesday at 5:38 a.m. PST (1338 GMT) in Beverly Hills, and winners will be announced at the 79th annual Academy Awards on February 25. Reuters/Nielsen
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