"Die Another Day," the James Bond thriller starring Pierce Brosnan and Oscar winner Halle Berry, was alive and kicking at the box office this weekend. The 20th film in the Bond series took in $47 million, edging out "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," which grossed more than $42 million during its second week in release.
The Bond film was the franchise's highest-grossing debut, taking in considerably more than "The World Is Not Enough," the last Bond film, also starring Brosnan, 50, which earned $35.5 million in 1999.
"Die Another Day" proved especially popular among women, who made up half of its audiences, and filmgoers under 25.
"Young men and women are embracing the Bond franchise unbelievably well," Peter Adee, head of marketing for MGM, the film's distributor, tells the Associated Press. "That puts us in a great place to set up the next movie."
Although the second film in the "Harry Potter" series failed to do as well as its predecessor, some analysts expect receipts to increase over the upcoming holiday weekend.
"You just watch on Thanksgiving. I think 'Harry Potter' is going to do very well, along with 'Santa Clause 2,'" says Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations, which tracks box-office sales.
Other notable releases included rapper Ice Cube's "Friday After Next," the third in his "Friday" series, which grabbed more than $13 million at the box office, and "My Big Fat Greek Wedding's" $3.8 million weekend take pushed the independent film's total post-nuptial receipts to more than $200 million. It's one of only six films to reach the mark this year.
The following are the weekend's Top 10 movies, based on studio estimates:
1. "Die Another Day," $47 million
2. "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," $42.4 million
3. "Friday After Next," $13.1 million
4. "The Santa Clause 2," $10.3 million
5. "8 Mile," $8.7 million
6. "The Ring," $7.6 million
7. "The Emperor's Club," $4.1 million
8. "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," $3.8 million
9. "Half Past Dead," $3.3 million
10. "Frida," $2.4 million
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