Weekend Box Office

*--*

Three-day gross/Total Screens/ Weeks in Movie (Studio) (millions) Average Release 1. “A.I. Artificial Intelligence” $29.4 3,242 1 (Warner Bros.) $29.4 $9,054 2. “The Fast and the Furious” $20.1 2,723 2 (Universal) $77.9 $7,365 3. “Dr. Dolittle 2” $15.8 3,053 2 (Fox) $51.4 $5,179 4. “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider” $10.2 3,349 3 (Paramount) $101.6 $3,049 5. “Baby Boy”* $8.6 1,533 1 (Sony/Columbia) $11.7 $5,614 6. “Atlantis: The Lost Empire” $8.3 3,030 4 (Disney) $58.4 $2,735 7. “Shrek” $7.7 2,704 7 (DreamWorks) $228.1 $2,850 8. “Pearl Harbor” $4.72 2,305 6 (Disney/Touchstone) $179.7 $2,049 9. “crazy/beautiful” $4.71 1,601 1 (Disney/Touchstone) $4.71 $2,945 10.”Swordfish” $4.3 2,225 4 (Warner Bros.) $60.8 $1,952 “Pootie Tang” $1.5 712 1 (Paramount) $1.5 $2,115 “The Closet” $85,253 4 1 (Miramax) $85,253 $21,313

*--*

* Opened Wednesday

‘A.I.’ Opens Smartly With $29.4 Million

Despite some unnerving images that prompted film critics to issue warnings to parents that the film might be inappropriate for young children, Steven Spielberg’s futuristic fantasy “A.I. Artificial Intelligence” debuted with $29.4 million to reign as box-office champion for the weekend.

“I think because of the Spielberg name there were built-in expectations, so in some circles [the opening] was considered a disappointment,” said Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box-office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations Co. “But given the tone of the movie--it’s not for little kids, it’s a real thinking-person’s movie--it did pretty well.”

“The Fast and the Furious” dropped by about 50% its second weekend, but it still grossed an impressive $20.1 million for a $77.9 million total so far, followed by “Dr. Dolittle 2” and “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider.”

“Baby Boy” opened Wednesday, taking in $11.7 million since then, and averaging an impressive $5,614 per screen. DreamWorks’ “Shrek” continued to perform well, taking in $7.7 million for a $228.1-million total so far. But “crazy/beautiful” was disappointing in its debut, finishing in ninth place with $4.71 million.

“Pootie Tang” and “The Closet” opened in more limited release.

SOURCE: Exhibitor Relations Co.