‘Sixth’ Lands in First Place

Hollywood Pictures’ “The Sixth Sense” took away some of the thunder from “The Blair Witch Project.” The Bruce Willis ghost story nabbed the No. 1 spot in its opening weekend with $26.7 million, making it the highest-grossing August-opening film. It finished ahead of “The Fugitive,” which opened to $23.7 million six years ago. “Sixth Sense” is the third $20-million-plus opener for Disney this summer.

“Blair Witch” added 1,041 screens to hold onto second place with $24.3 million and a total of $80 million.

The updated version of “The Thomas Crown Affair,” with Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo, came in fourth in its first weekend with $14.6 million. Despite generally excellent reviews, Warner Bros.’ animated feature “The Iron Giant” placed ninth with $5.79 million.

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Three-day gross/ Screens/ Weeks in Movie (Studio) Total (millions) Average Release 1. “The Sixth Sense” $26.7 2,161 1 (Hollywood) $26.7 $12,347 2. “The Blair Witch Project” $24.4 2,142 4 (Artisan) $80.0 $11,367 3. “Runaway Bride” $21.0 2,161 2 (Paramount) $74.0 $6,572 4. “The Thomas Crown Affair” $14.6 2,427 1 (MGM/UA) $14.6 $6,016 5. “Deep Blue Sea” $11.2 2,901 2 (Warner Bros.) $45.5 $3,862 6. “Mystery Men” $10.0 2,136 1 (Universal) $10.0 $4,690 7. “Inspector Gadget” $9.2 2,862 3 (Disney) $64.8 $3,205 8. “The Haunting” $6.3 2,881 3 (DreamWorks) $77.3 $2,235 9. “The Iron Giant” $5.7 2,179 1 (Warner Bros.) $5.7 $2,631 10. “American Pie” $4.1 1,795 5 (Universal) $85.5 $2,310

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