Weekend Box Office : ‘Mortal Kombat’ Charges to First Place

The martial-arts action film “Mortal Kombat” surprised industry observers by grabbing the top spot in the weekly box-office race with $23.3 million in ticket sales. “Everybody underestimated the pull on it,” said John Krier, who heads Exhibitor Relations Co., a firm that tracks box office. New Line officials said the film sold out during Thursday night sneaks, and was helped by an aggressive ad campaign and the fact that the film is based on a video game that is popular with kids.

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Weekend Gross/ Screens/ Movie (Studio) Total (millions) Average 1. “Mortal Kombat” $23.3 2,421 (New Line) $23.3 $9,617 2. “Dangerous Minds” $10.1 1,554 (Hollywood/Disney) $33.1 $6,528 3. “A Walk in the Clouds” $7.5 1,750 (Fox) $22 $4,305 4. “Something to Talk About” $5.6 1,787 (Warner Bros.) $33.9 $3,130 5. “Waterworld” $5.3 2,413 (Universal) $70.1 $2,200 6. “Babe” $5.1 1,790 (Universal) $30.2 $2,875 7. “The Net” $3.7 1,805 (Columbia) $38 $2,052 8. “Apollo 13” $3.6 1,819 (Universal) $153.6 $1,980 9. “The Baby-Sitters Club” $3.4 1,709 (Columbia) $3.4 $2,001 10. “A Kid in King Arthur’s Court” $2.3 1,862 (Disney) $9.3 $1,239

Weeks in Movie (Studio) Release 1. “Mortal Kombat” 1 (New Line) 2. “Dangerous Minds” 2 (Hollywood/Disney) 3. “A Walk in the Clouds” 2 (Fox) 4. “Something to Talk About” 3 (Warner Bros.) 5. “Waterworld” 4 (Universal) 6. “Babe” 3 (Universal) 7. “The Net” 4 (Columbia) 8. “Apollo 13” 8 (Universal) 9. “The Baby-Sitters Club” 1 (Columbia) 10. “A Kid in King Arthur’s Court” 2 (Disney)

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SOURCE: Exhibitor Relations Co.