Fall Is 'sweet' For Domestic B.o.

The national boxoffice was on blistering pace during the autumn season as four films grossed more than $100 million each — an industry first — and cash registers rang up a staggering $1.58 billion in receipts. This fall's boxoffice total shattered the previous high of $1.19 billion set in 2001 by an extraordinary 32%, or nearly $400 million.

Perhaps more importantly, admissions followed suit as the turnstiles were spinning faster than Santa can slide down a chimney. Estimated ticket units for the fall season were 271.3 million, a stunning increase of 30% over last year's 208 million.

Patrons were warming seats in movie theaters at a breakneck rate as the new high in ticket units effortlessly vaulted past the previous record of 222.8 million by a remarkable 22%. The old record was set in 1998, when New Line's "Rush Hour" was in theaters.

Leading the charge at the boxoffice were four films that topped $100 million each: Buena Vista's "Sweet Home Alabama," IFC's "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," Warner Bros. Pictures' "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" and DreamWorks' "The Ring." The next three highest-grossing films of the season were within $15.3 million or less of reaching that level.

Having four films top $100 million during the fall, which in years past usually generated moderate returns at the ticket window at best, is an exceptional achievement that furthers the industry's oft-repeated mantra that this is a 52-week-a-year business. The autumn of 2000 saw two film surpass $100 million each by season's end, Universal's "Meet the Parents" and Buena Vista's "Remember the Titans," while the fall sessions of 2001, 1999, 1998, and 1987, registered one film apiece that exceeded that level.

This fall, it was clearly the hits that were driving the business as the aggregate for the top 10 films reached a sensational $898.5 million. That comparable total has never reached $600 million in the past.

Helping this year's fall session was an extra seven days. The autumn boxoffice season runs 10-to-11 weeks, covering post-Labor Day to pre-Thanksgiving weeks. The last time an 11-week season occurred was in 1997, which points to strong performances during most of the years in between, as they were all 10-week sessions that surpassed the comparable 11-week periods in 1997 and 1996. The inclusive dates this year were Sept. 6 through Nov. 21.

The gains at the boxoffice this year were realized through a wide range of genres appealing to a broad spectrum of moviegoers, as well as a healthy supply of quality films, which for the most part are receiving positive response from audiences. Only one film was a holdover prior to the fall season — "Greek Wedding," which was actually released during the spring.

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