A 'Monster' Weekend for Hollywood

By Stephen M. Silverman

11/12/2001 at 12:24 PM EST

"Monsters, Inc." chewed up and spat out the competition for a second week running and set an animated film record for speed in breaking $100 million in ticket sales. Actually, the Disney-Pixar collaboration reached the $123 million mark this weekend, but it got to $100 million in a mere nine days, eclipsing the previous animated film record holder, 1999's "Toy Story 2," which took 11 days to hit that level. The success of "Monsters" heralds what should be a record-breaking year for Hollywood. Box office receipts are on track to surpass last year's $7.7 billion total and to break $8 billion for the first time, say industry observers. Fourteen films have passed the $100 million mark this year. And "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" hasn't even opened yet. The new comedy "Shallow Hal," starring Gwyneth Paltrow, also made a deep impression on moviegoers, and came in at No. 2. The weekend Top 10, according to studio estimates:

1. "Monsters, Inc.," $46.2 million.
2. "Shallow Hal," $23.3 million.
3. "The One," $9.1 million.
4. "Domestic Disturbance," $8.5 million.
5. "Heist," $8 million.
6. "K-Pax," $6.2 million.
7. "Thirteen Ghosts," $4.2 million.
8. "Life as a House," $3.7 million.
9. "Riding in Cars with Boys," $2.1 million.
10. "Training Day," $1.9 million.