Weekend Box Office : ‘Pelican Brief’ Flies to Top Spot

Estimates for the weekend’s movie grosses--usually on the high side--took a turn in the other direction. After what has been a slower-than-expected holiday season, business turned up a bit on Sunday afternoon. The Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington drama, “The Pelican Brief,” grossed $16.9 million (the weekend estimate on Sunday morning had been $16.6 million) and the comedy “Mrs. Doubtfire” collected $9 million (the estimate had been $8.6 million). The grosses for “Wayne’s World 2,” “Beethoven’s 2nd” and “Sister Act 2” also were ahead of estimates.

“Schindler’s List,” the much-anticipated film from Steven Spielberg, scored a strong $656,636 for the weekend on about 45 screens in 18 cities. The $14,592 per-screen average is impressive especially in light of the film’s long length, which reduces the number of showings per day. Meanwhile, Spielberg’s other 1993 movie sold an estimated $694,575 worth of tickets domestically in the Friday-through-Sunday period: After 28 weekends, the total for “Jurassic Park” in the U.S. and Canada is a whopping $336.8 million.

Weekend Gross/ Screens/ Weeks in Movie (Studio) Total (millions) Average Release 1. “The Pelican Brief” $16.9 1,993 1 (Warner Bros.) $16.9 $8,462 2. “Mrs. Doubtfire” $9 2,290 4 (20th Century Fox) $72.6 $3,955 3. “Wayne’s World 2” $6.3 2,400 2 (Paramount) $23 $2,615 4. “Beethoven’s 2nd” $6 2,026 1 (Universal) $6 $2,970 5. “Sister Act 2” $5.2 2,149 2 (Touchstone) $14.9 $2,548 6. “Geronimo” $2.3 1,605 2 (Columbia) $7.8 $1,440 7. “A Perfect World” $1.5 1,710 4 (Warner Bros.) $25.3 $861 8. “The Three Musketeers” $1.2 1,280 6 (Walt Disney) $43 $975 9. “Addams Family Values” $1.2 1,581 5 (Paramount) $41 $740 10. “The Piano” $1.1 259 6 (Miramax) $10.1 $4,139 * “Six Degrees of Separation” $35,857 2 2 (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) $127,776 $17,929

* MGM’s release of “Six Degrees of Separation,” based on the play by John Guare, is off to a good start with $35,857 in only two theaters. Ditto Paramount’s “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” with $74,421 at only six theaters. SOURCE: Exhibitor Relations Co.