Reuters North American News Service, December 9th, 2007
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "The Golden Compass," a $180
million family fantasy starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig,
did not meet expectations at the North American box office,
opening at No. 1 but with weekend ticket sales of just $26.1
million, its distributor said Sunday.
New Line Cinema, a unit of Time Warner Inc, had
hoped the film would pull in between $30 million and $40
million.
"It's a little bit disappointing," said Rolf Mittweg,
president and chief operating officer of New Line's worldwide
distribution and marketing operations.
He hoped word of mouth would help the film in coming weeks,
especially with school holidays starting. "It's all about
longevity," he said.
Based on the first book in British author Philip Pullman's
acclaimed children's series "His Dark Materials,"
writer/director Chris Weitz's film is set in an alternate world
ruled by an oppressive religious authority. It features talking
animals and a heroine played by youngster Dakota Blue
Richards.
Even though the film downplays the religious aspect, the
Catholic League said it wanted Christians "to stay away from
this movie." But the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
described it as "an exciting adventure story with a traditional
struggle between good and evil."
After leading the pack for two weeks, Walt Disney Co's
hit fairy-tale fantasy "Enchanted" slipped to No. 2
with $10.7 million, taking its three-week tally to $83.9
million.
Sony Corp's urban comedy "This Christmas"
held at No. 3 with $5.0 million, giving it a $42.8 million
total, also after three weeks.
(Reporting by Dean Goodman; editing by Eric Walsh)
