Los Angeles, May 27: With a little divine help, comedian Jim Carrey propelled the lucrative summer box-office season to a record-breaking start over the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

Carrey's new film, Bruce Almighty, in which the 40-year-old Canadian plays a disenchanted newsman entrusted with omnipotence by God himself, sold a better-than-expected $86 million worth of tickets in its first four days. The film ended the one-week reign of the sci-fi thriller The Matrix Reloaded, which slipped to No. 2, with $45.6 million, as its 12-day total raced to $209.5 million. It becomes the second-fastest film to reach the double-century mark (11 days, versus nine for 2002's Spider-Man).
The Bruce Almighty haul ranks as the second-best Memorial Day opening ever, behind only The Lost World, which launched with $90.2 million in 1997.
The top 12 movies grossed an estimated $155.8 million, according to tracking firm Exhibitor Relations. If the numbers hold when final data are released later today, the haul will top last year's record sum of $152.5 million.



Carrey's star power aside, the grim weather also played a part, forcing Americans to ditch their traditional holiday barbecues for popcorn at the local multiplex.



Bruce Almighty also set new benchmarks for Carrey himself and for a non-sequel comedy. Its three-day sum of $70.8 million surpassed the 2000 Carrey hit Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas, which held both those records with a $55.1 million opening.



Budgeted at $81 million, Bruce Almighty was directed by Tom Shadyac, who previously worked with Carrey on the hit comedies Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and Liar Liar. Morgan Freeman co-stars as God, and Jennifer Aniston plays Carrey's girlfriend.



While Carrey was obviously the key attraction, Aniston's presence and the romantic elements possibly accounted for the larger-than-usual female turnout. Women accounted for 53 percent of the audience, according to exit polling data. Carrey's movies usually do best with young males.



Rounding out the top five were the Eddie Murphy comedy Daddy Day Care, at No. 3 with $18 million; the superhero action movie X2: X-Men United, at No. 4 with $13.1 million; and the new Michael Douglas comedy remake, The In-Laws, at No. 5 with a disappointing $9.1 million.



The top 10 films for May 23-26 1. Bruce Almighty, $86.4 million 2. The Matrix Reloaded, $45.6 million 3. Daddy Day Care, $18 million 4. X2: X-Men United, $13.1 million 5. The In-Laws, $9.1 million 6. Down With Love, $5.1 million 7. The Lizzie McGuire Movie, $4 million 8. Holes, $3 million 9. Identity, $2.6 million 10. Anger Management, $2.4 million


Bureau Report