"Chicago" co-star Queen Latifah may have been outshined on Oscar night, but her current comedy hit is still razzle-dazzling movie goers.
Her comedy "Bringing Down the House" -- which also stars Oscar host Steve Martin -- landed in the No. 1 spot at the box office for the third weekend in a row, grossing $16.2 million, lifting its total take to $83.4 million and elbowing out some of the newest arrivals, the Associated Press reports.
But overall, weekend grosses fell against last year's figures, as audiences stayed home to watch war coverage. The weekend's top 12 films took home almost a third less than on the same weekend a year ago -- for an estimated total of $83.9 million.
"I think the war has impacted people's desire to go out to the movies," Miramax chief operating officer Rick Sands tells AP. "I think people were at home with their families, they were watching the news and not a lot of movies did a lot of business."
Miramax's new Gwyneth Paltrow vehicle, the slapstick airline comedy "View from the Top," debuted at No. 4, taking in $7.6 million; the Stephen King adaptation "Dreamcatcher," which features Morgan Freeman, Donnie Wahlberg and Jason Lee, landed in the No. 2 spot with $15.3 million.
The following are estimated ticket sales for Friday through, according to box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations:
1. "Bringing Down the House," $16.2 million
2. "Dreamcatcher," $15.3 million
3. "Agent Cody Banks," $9.3 million
4. "View from the Top," $7.6 million
5. "The Hunted," $6.6 million
6. "Chicago," $6.2 million
7. "Piglet's Big Movie," $6.1 million
8. "Tears of the Sun," $4.5 million
9. "Old School," $4 million
10. "Boat Trip," $3.7 million
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