Viewers warm to Ice Cube comedy

The family comedy “Are We There Yet?” arrived in the No. 1 spot at the movies over the weekend with an estimated $18.5 million, according to studio figures released Sunday. The film stars Ice Cube as a suitor who goes to great lengths to pursue single mother Nia Long, whose two diabolically bratty kids do everything in their power to derail the courtship.

Although severe winter weather in the East took a big chunk out of weekend movie business overall, “Are We There Yet?” demonstrated broad appeal, with audiences that were 43% white, 26% African American and 18% Latino, with other ethnic groups making up the remainder, Sony Pictures Entertainment reported.

The studio’s exit surveys also showed that 66% of the audience consisted of families and 34% nonfamilies.

Coming on the heels of Ice Cube’s previous success with the “Barbershop” films, the movie’s solid opening bolsters the actor’s strength as a performer with appeal that reaches well beyond the action and urban genres.

The emergence of “Are We There Yet?” as No. 1 also came as something of a surprise within the industry, because audience research going into the weekend had strongly indicated “Coach Carter” would hold on to the top spot. The basketball-themed movie with Samuel L. Jackson in the title role took in an estimated $11 million in its second weekend, bringing the Paramount Pictures release’s total to $43.2 million.

Tom Sherak, a partner in Revolution Studios, which produced “Are We There Yet?,” noted that his company’s next movie, “XXX: State of the Union,” features the stars of the weekend’s top two films, with Ice Cube as the title character originated by Vin Diesel and Jackson reprising his turn as the head of a clandestine government agency.

Sherak and other executives said extreme winter weather in the East cut into business, with some saying attendance overall could be off by as much as 25% because of the weather.

“Assault on Precinct 13,” the weekend’s other major debut, landed at No. 6 with an estimated $7 million and $8.6 million since the movie starring Ethan Hawke and Laurence Fishburne opened Wednesday.

“The Aviator,” which added 305 theaters after its Golden Globe win for best dramatic picture, grossed an estimated $4.8 million in ninth place.

Although Sunday projections placed it outside the top 10, “Sideways” (at No. 11) took in about $2.9 million in 699 theaters, its widest release yet, bringing the 14-week total to about $32 million for the critical darling and Golden Globe winner in the comedy or musical movie and screenplay categories.

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Box Office

Preliminary results (in millions) based on studio projections.

*--* Movie 3-day gross Total

Are We There Yet? $18.5 $18.5

Coach Carter 11 43.2

Meet the Fockers 10.2 247.7

In Good Company 8.5 28

Racing Stripes 7.1 27.3

Assault on Precinct 13 7 8.6

White Noise 5 49.4

The Phantom of the Opera 5 33.6

The Aviator 4.8 58

Elektra 3.8 20.2

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Source: Nielsen EDI Inc.

Los Angeles Times