‘West’ Tops in Wild, Wild Weekend

The torrid pace of summer films touched off box-office fireworks through the Fourth of July holiday as audiences found enough time to picnic, watch parades and all-American Wimbledon winners--and go to the movies in huge numbers.

After a best-ever June--25% ahead of last year and 15% above 1993’s previous best, when the dinosaurs of “Jurassic Park” ruled the multiplex--a record seven films grossed in excess of $10 million over the four-day July holiday. The top 12 films amassed a sizzling $152 million, according to Exhibitor Relations, 16% ahead of last year’s holiday weekend.

“Wild Wild West” set no records but earned about $50 million in its first six days of release ($36.8 million of that over the past four days in 3,342 locations). But it does prove one thing: Will Smith is one of the most viable stars around, no matter how creaky the vehicle. The poorly reviewed western spoof from Warner Bros. looks to be Smith’s third successive $100-million-plus grossing film, if not one of the studio’s most profitable ventures.

The holiday’s second debut, “South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut,” cussed its way to about $23 million over its first six days in 2,128 theaters and an estimated $14.8 million over the four-day weekend. The R-rated animated feature garnered surprisingly good reviews and a sizable male audience; theater owners reportedly were unusually diligent in trying to keep out the under-17 crowd.

“South Park’s” opening week paid for most of the film’s $20-million budget. And in case you were wondering if the movie will ever make it to TV, the studio says that “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are obligated to turn in a suitably edited version for television--which means the film should end up being about 10 minutes long.

Other big winners over the holiday included “Big Daddy” and “Tarzan,” both on a pace to be huge summer hits.

But “Wild Wild West” isn’t performing up to the high summer standards of Adam Sandler’s “Big Daddy” or Mike Myers’ “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me,” both of which debuted over three-day weekends to better than $40 million and $50 million, respectively. And “Wild Wild West” cost far more. Warner Bros. is sticking to its highly disputed $105-million budget figure, though most industry sources place the cost at around $180 million.

With even the top summer performers dropping 40% in their second weekends, it will be interesting to see if “Wild Wild West” can hang on to the slippery top slot against the raunchy low-budget teen comedy “American Pie,” which opens Friday.

Spike Lee’s “Summer of Sam,” which chronicles what happened in New York during the Son of Sam murders in the late ‘70s, debuted on Friday to an estimated $7.8 million for the weekend, unable to rise any higher than eighth place in this week’s summer sweepstakes. Lack of star power and difficult subject matter--especially for the summer--also dampened the film’s potential.

“Big Daddy” took a predictable tumble, but with the addition of a holiday Monday, sired a strong four-day estimate of $26.4 million, a solid second-place finish. After 11 days in theaters, Sandler’s latest comedy has already grossed more than $90 million and could end up making as much as $150 million, making it his second-biggest film behind “The Waterboy.”

Third place went to “Tarzan,” which zipped past $100 million on Saturday and recorded a predicted $19.2 million over the weekend, bringing its three-week total to $111 million. Other than “Lion King,” “Tarzan” is leading the Disney animation pack in grossing power and by next week will surpass last summer’s “Mulan.”

“Austin Powers” still has hair on his chest, thumping to seventh place, bringing in about $10.8 million; the profitable sequel has made $170 million, squeaking past “The Matrix” to become the second-highest-grossing film of the year so far.

The No. 1 film of 1999 is, of course, “Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace,” which after seven weeks continues to be unaffected by the other strong movies in the marketplace, maintaining about 70% to 75% of its previous weekend’s business, the sign of a true blockbuster.

After moving out of almost 500 screens, which were committed to six-week runs, “Phantom Menace” is now in 2,631 theaters. But the four-day gross remained potent, an estimated $11.7 million, taking the film to almost $372 million. In two to three weeks, “Phantom Menace” will surpass “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial” and become the third-highest-grossing film of all time, right behind the original “Star Wars.”

Meanwhile, “The General’s Daughter” is holding on nicely, having the older audience demographic largely to itself. Its third-weekend total was $14.6 million, taking “General” into the $70-million range, indicating that it will end up north of $90 million.

“The General’s Daughter’s” only real competition for the over-25 crowd is the romantic comedy “Notting Hill,” which added about $5 million over the weekend, bringing its six-week total to about $98 million. Along with “Big Daddy,” “Notting Hill” should join “Phantom Menace,” “Austin Powers,” “Tarzan” and “The Mummy” in the summer $100-million club by the weekend.