Universal Holdovers Take Early Fall Lead

With a lull in major studio releases, Universal’s end-of-summer box-office hold is carrying over into the fall season. After four weeks, the studio’s surprise John Candy comedy hit “Uncle Buck,” along with “Parenthood,” continued to lead the box office with weekend takes of $4.5 million and $4.4 million, respectively. Between them, the Universal family films have grossed $110 million at a time when other studios are mostly gearing up for the fall season. The weekend’s only new nationwide release came from an independent film company. With no big openings to compete against, Cannon scored big with “Kickboxer,” starring good-looking martial arts sensation Jean-Claude Van Damme. The film grossed $4.1 million on 973 screens, a per-screen average of $4,249 million.

* “Romero,” featuring Raul Julia as the martyred Salvadoran archbishop Oscar Romero, opened solidly for $167,042 on 23 screens. Despite mixed reviews, the Four Seasons film averaged a strong $5,318 per screen.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE

Weekend Gross/ Screens/ Weeks Movie (Studio) Total (millions) Average in Release 1.”Uncle Buck” $4.5 1,824 4 (Universal) $40.4 $2,495 2.”Parenthood” $4.4 1,388 6 (Universal) $69.6 $3,175 3.”Kickboxer” $4.1 973 1 (Cannon) $4.1 $4,249 4.”When Harry Met Sally...” $3.1 1,171 9 (Columbia) $71.5 $2,658 5.”The Abyss” $2.9 1,498 5 (20th Century Fox) $44.5 $1,913 *”Romero” $167,042 23 1 (Four Seasons) $167,042 $5,318