Weekend box office

The franchise lives. “Die Another Day,” the 20th installment in MGM’s lucrative James Bond industry, saw the best opening ever for a Bond film, raking in $47.1 million. The question now, heading into the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, is whether Bond can hold on to the No. 1 spot, given that “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” which grossed $42.2 million over the weekend, remains a powerful force. Also, never rule out Disney during this period, especially Disney animation. This Wednesday, the Mouse House releases “Treasure Planet,” which should be popular with families.

Meanwhile, in limited release, “The Quiet American” opened in six theaters with $101,663 for a healthy $16,944 per screen average. The small indie drama “Personal Velocity” debuted on two New York screens, grossing $29,943 for an average of $14,972. It opens Wednesday in L.A.

Source: Exhibitor Relations Co.

*--* Movie 3-day gross/ Screens/ Avg Wks in Release (Studio) Total (millions) 1 Die $47.1 $47.1 3,314 $14,204 1 Another Day (MGM) 2 Harry $42.2 $148.4 3,682 $11,469 2 Potter Cham Sec (Warner Bros.) 3 Friday $13.0 $13.0 1,616 $8,050 1 After Next (New Line) 4 The $10.2 $94.9 3,251 $3,141 4 Santa Clause 2 (Buena Vista) 5 8 Mile $8.6 $97.6 2,585 $3,335 3 (Universa l) 6 The Ring $7.6 $110.8 2,628 $2,877 6 (DreamWor ks) 7 $3.8 $3.8 809 $4,755 1 Emperor’s Club (Universa l) 8 Big Fat $3.7 $204.5 1,585 $2,307 32 Greek Wed (IFC Films) 9 Half $3.1 $12.5 2,113 $1,479 2 Past Dead (Sony) 10 Frida $2.4 $12.1 794 $2,984 5 (Miramax)

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-- Robert W. Welkos