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'Sith' midnight shows shatter records


By Brian Fuson
While the storm troopers of doubt circled the beleaguered boxoffice of late, the Force was beginning to flex its power as 20th Century Fox's "Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith" was shattering records out of the gate with an estimated $16.5 million-$17 million in receipts from the midnight shows alone.

"We'll be counting the grosses for a while," said Bruce Snyder, president of domestic distribution at Fox. "It's an absolutely remarkable number. It seems like the industry got kick-started last night at midnight."

Snyder said final numbers will not be available for some time because midnight shows are not usually broken out of a single day's gross at the boxoffice.

Snyder also noted the impact "Sith," written and directed by George Lucas, could have on the industry as a whole. "We can't overlook the benefit to the industry overall, of so many people walking through the lobbies last night and seeing the one sheets, the standees and the trailers for the upcoming slate of summer films. I think that will help bring in audiences and bodes well for the industry," he said.

"Sith" began playing midnight shows in 2,900 theaters in North America at 12:01 a.m. Thursday. Snyder could not give a firm screen count but said it could be significantly higher because of interlocking, the practice of taking one print and showing it on multiple screens within a theater. The lack of any other film playing midnight shows on Thursday essentially made nearly every auditorium in the multiplex available, and exhibitors added screens as demand warranted.

While the estimated gross for the midnight shows is a record, there are not many hard and fast midnight shows to compare it with because typically the grosses from the midnight screenings are included in the first day's gross. Snyder noted that "Star Wars: Episode II -- Attack of the Clones" had midnight shows in 1,400 theaters and took in about $6.2 million.

After midnight shows, the closest comparison would be previews. The highest-grossing preview on record is the estimated $5 million generated by Warner Bros. Pictures' "The Matrix Reloaded," which played in 2,750 theaters at 10 p.m. the Wednesday before the Thursday wide release, followed by Sony's "Men in Black" with $4.8 million from 2,452 theaters in 1997.

Looking ahead, the biggest single Thursday in history belongs to "Matrix Reloaded," which took in $37.5 million. "Matrix's" previews of about $5 million from the Wednesday night are not considered a part of the Thursday gross.

The biggest single day in history is owned by DreamWorks' "Shrek 2," with $44.8 million coming on a Saturday, followed by Sony's "Spider-Man," with a Saturday gross of $43.6 million. The highest single day ever for a "Star Wars" film is $31.2 million, from "Clones" on a Saturday.

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