Dogs Have Their Day as ‘101’ Fends Off ‘Daylight’

Sly Stallone’s much ballyhooed “Daylight” was dimmed by the week-old “101 Dalmatians” at the box office this weekend.

But Disney’s pooch power couldn’t fend off the bite of a post-holiday slump, and though it stayed on top in ticket sales, “101 Dalmatians” slid dramatically from $45 million over the five-day Thanksgiving weekend to an estimated $13.5 million over the past three days.

All films fell during what is typically one of the slowest movie-going weekends of the year, when many people dodge the theaters for the shopping malls. Still, total box office was up an estimated 13% over the same weekend last year, according to Exhibitor Relations, a box-office tracking firm.

The post-holiday period’s track record didn’t deter Universal from releasing “Daylight,” which brought in an estimated $10.2 million, landing it in second place. The film is the first of three for which Stallone is being paid $20 million.

Some exhibitors say that after a seemingly endless summer of loud and explosive fare, the public is tired of action flicks. Plus, they note, this time of year, audiences usually want comedy, romance, drama or fantasy.

However, said Nikki Rocco, head of Universal’s distribution, “we opened this film this weekend specifically to build word of mouth. It is the only action-disaster movie in the marketplace that’s PG-13. We’re quite happy with these results. This is a tough market right now and it will get tougher next week,” Rocco said.

Translation: Universal wanted Stallone to have at least a week in theaters before Tom Cruise’s “Jerry Maguire” opens this week. Both films target the same male audience.

“Daylight” and “Dalmatians” are expected to feel a bit of a pinch from Tim Burton’s “Mars Attacks!” as well. The sci-fi film from Warner Bros. should draw male, youth and female audiences. “The Preacher’s Wife” starring Whitney Houston and Denzel Washington also opens this week.

Despite “Dalmatians’ ” significant drop-off in only a week, John Krier, who heads Exhibitor Relations, downplayed any conjecture that audiences have turned against the live-action version of the cartoon classic.

“It will bounce back,” he said. “Everybody was hit [this weekend]. And considering that, ‘Daylight’ hitting the $10-million mark is not bad at all.”

Woody Allen’s “Everyone Says I Love You” opened strongly with an estimated $134,000 in ticket sales. Allen’s first musical, which drew mixed reviews, opened in three theaters (two in Los Angeles, one in New York) and grossed about $44,667 per venue.

As for the rest of the top 10:

“Star Trek: First Contact” was in third place with $6.65 million; “Jingle All the Way” and “Ransom” tied for fourth with $5.4 million; “Space Jam” was sixth with $4.4 million; “The English Patient” was seventh with $2.78 million; “The Mirror Has Two Faces” was eighth with $2.5 million; “William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet” was ninth with $1.2 million; and “Set It Off” was 10th with $1.1 million. All totals are estimates; final results are to be released today.