'Stuart Little 2,' 'Perdition' Share Box Office Lead ==================================================== LOS ANGELES (Variety) - In torpid trading at the North American box office, "`Stuart Little 2`__" and "`Road to Perdition`__" tied at No. 1, while `Harrison Ford`__'s submarine drama "K:19 -- The Widowmaker" was torpedoed in its first outing. The two champs each grossed a modest $15.6 million for the three days beginning July 19, according to estimates issued on Sunday by their respective studios, Columbia Pictures and DreamWorks. Final data will be issued on Monday. The last time the No. 1 movie grossed such a low figure was in February, when "`Queen of the Damned`__" opened with $14.8 million. "Stuart Little 2", a sequel to the hit 1999 talking-mouse movie, was a new release, while the `Tom Hanks`__ gangster drama "Road to Perdition" bowed at No. 2 last weekend. Along with the other two rookies, "K:19" and seventh-ranked spider horror "`Eight Legged Freaks`__," sales for "Stuart Little" disappointed. __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1807617199 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1807428926 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800017113 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1807463608 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800010392 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1807645163 After two weeks at No. 1, the sci-fi comedy "`Men in Black II`__" (Columbia) slipped to No. 3 with $15 million, while Ford's pricey "K:19" (Paramount) opened at No. 4 with $13.1 million. The `Adam Sandler`__ comedy "`Mr. Deeds`__" (Columbia) held steady at No. 5 with $7.3 million in its fourth weekend. Following six consecutive weekends of year-on-year gains, ticket sales for the top 12 films tumbled about 22 percent from the year-ago period when "`Jurassic Park III`__" opened at No. 1 with $50.8 million, said tracking firm Exhibitor Relations. Studio executives said a crush of new titles did not help matters, with films like "Perdition" and "K:19" targeted at the same older-skewing audience. Overall business this year is still outpacing last year's record trading. __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1805535166 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800018711 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1807751013 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1804094774 "ROAD" PAVED WITH GOLD ---------------------- Box office analyst `Gitesh Pandya`__ at boxofficeguru.com pointed to a lack of big "event" films targeted at teens and young adults, who make up the largest portion of summer moviegoers. But he expected business to improve dramatically with "`Austin Powers in Goldmember`__" opening next weekend, "Signs" on Aug. 2 and "XXX" on Aug. 9. The only bright spot was "Road to Perdition," whose 29 percent fall, was the slightest in the top 10. After two weekends, the Tom Hanks gangster saga has grossed $47.5 million. Despite boosting its theater count by 362 to 2,159, the `Sam Mendes`__-directed "Perdition" is playing in far fewer locations than its rivals -- "Stuart Little" (3,255), "Men in Black II" (3,641), "K:19" (2,828) and "Mr. Deeds" (2,823). "Stuart Little 2," which reportedly cost about $120 million to make on account of its special effects, opened on par with its predecessor. Still rival studios had expected it to open north of $20 million. "We would have liked it to be bigger," said Jeff Blake, Columbia's president of worldwide marketing and distribution. He declined to reveal his target, but hoped support from family audiences would underpin grosses over the next few weeks. Columbia Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp (news - web sites), controlled about one-third of the market, Blake estimated. "Stuart Little 2," directed by `Rob Minkoff`__, stars `Geena Davis`__ and English actor `Hugh Laurie`__ as the adoptive parents of the sharp-dressed title character. The original film ended up with $140 million domestically. __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1804486101 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1807485310 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800018631 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800024923 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800012507 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800024921 SUB SINKS --------- Hopes were also high for "K:19 -- The Widowmaker," a $100 million project developed by Intermedia Films, a unit of Germany's IM Internationalmedia AG. However Intermedia offset the "lion's share" of the cost by pre-selling foreign rights, said Jere Hausfater, the company's president of worldwide distribution and acquisitions. `Paramount Pictures`__, a unit of Viacom Inc. is handling distribution for North America and select foreign territories. Paramount distribution president Wayne Lewellen said he had hoped the film would open in the high-teens-to-$20 million range. Citing strong exit polls and solid reviews, both he and Hausfater blamed the film's performance on the overall market. They hoped adults would turn up in the next few weeks. The fact-based story stars Ford as a Russian submarine commander who struggles to prevent a nuclear explosion on his cursed craft. Irish actor `Liam Neeson`__ co-starred; `Kathryn Bigelow`__ directed. The film is on track to be one of the worst openings for Ford, who turned 60 earlier this month. Among recent releases, his 1999 flop "`Random Hearts`__" opened with $13 million. __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800023778 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800019540 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800091098 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1800019286 "Eight Legged Freaks," a low-budget film starring `David Arquette`__, had pulled in $9.3 million since its Wednesday opening. Warner Bros. distribution president Dan Fellman said the tally was disappointing, but he declined to say by how much. Warner Bros. is a unit of AOL Time Warner Inc. The film was directed by New Zealand rookie `Ellory Elkayem`__. The 19-day total for "Men in Black II" rose to $158.6 million. Columbia's Blake said the film had an "excellent chance" of breaking $200 million; the 1997 original ended up with $250 million. "Mr. Deeds" has $107.6 million after 24 days, and should crack $125 million, Blake said. __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1800019202 __ http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hc&cf=gen&id=1804668751