AP Movie Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Mel Gibson's bloody epic "Apocalypto"
debuted as the No. 1 weekend movie, proving the
filmmaker still can deliver a winner despite his
drunken-driving arrest and anti-Semitic rant last
summer.
"Apocalypto," a Disney release set in the Mayan
civilization and told in an obscure Mayan language,
opened with $14.2 million, according to studio estimates
Sunday.
It was a modest haul compared to the $83.8 million
opening weekend of Gibson's last movie, the 2004
religious blockbuster "The Passion of the Christ," which
went on to do $370 million domestically.
But "Apocalypto" overcame the baggage of Gibson's
personal troubles as well as its difficult subject
matter, which features a no-name cast in a hyper-violent
tale that includes beheadings and images of hearts
ripped from people's chests.
"The movie obviously succeeds on its own level. I think
people probably are a bit on the surprised side around
town that it's No. 1," said Chuck Viane, head of
distribution for Disney. "Two months ago, nobody would
have bet on that."
Sony's romance "The Holiday" debuted at No. 2 with $13.5
million. Directed by Nancy Meyers, the movie stars
Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jack Black and Jude Law in
the story of American and British women who swap homes
for the holidays and find love in the process.
The Warner Bros. thriller "Blood Diamond," starring
Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Connelly and Djimon Hounsou,
opened at No. 5 with $8.5 million. Set against Sierra
Leone's civil war in the 1990s, the film follows a
mercenary pursuing a rare diamond.
Also from Warner Bros., the holiday comedy
"Unaccompanied Minors," about a group of kids run amok
while stranded at an airport Christmas Eve, premiered at
No. 6 with $6.2 million.
The Warner Bros. animated hit "Happy Feet" and Sony's
James Bond adventure "Casino Royale," which had been the
top-two movies for three-straight weekends, slipped to
Nos. 3 and 4, respectively.
"Happy Feet" took in $12.7 million, raising its total to
$137.7 million. "Casino Royale" grossed $8.8 million,
lifting its total to $128.9 million.
The overall box office fell sharply, with the top-12
movies grossing $86.8 million, down 25 percent from the
same weekend last year, when the blockbuster "The
Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the
Wardrobe" opened with $65.6 million.
Disney reported that Gibson's "Apocalypto" drew solid
crowds across-the-board, with movie-goers equally split
between men and women and the core of the audience
ranging from 18 to 45.
The publicity over Gibson's problems and his
contriteness since last summer may have stoked
interested in "Apocalypto," said Paul Dergarabedian,
president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers.
"Whenever I tell people I saw the movie, they'd be like,
`You saw it? How was it?' There was a huge curiosity
factor," Dergarabedian said. "A movie about Mayan
civilization was never destined to be a big hit, let
alone a No. 1 movie. But through Disney's marketing,
which highlights Mel Gibson -- I believe they associated
him very closely with the movie -- I think that strategy
paid off."
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S.
and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers
LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. "Apocalypto," $14.2 million.
2. "The Holiday," $13.5 million.
3. "Happy Feet," $12.7 million.
4. "Casino Royale," $8.8 million.
5. "Blood Diamond," $8.5 million.
6. "Unaccompanied Minors," $6.2 million.
7. "Deja Vu," $6.1 million.
8. "The Nativity Story," $5.6 million.
9. "Deck the Halls," $3.9 million.
10. "The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause," $3.3
million.
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