Dreamworks' animated feature, Shark Tale, set a new record for October movie debuts with an estimated total of $49.1 million.  Shark Tale, which features the vocal talents of Will Smith, Robert De Niro, and Renee Zellweger, sprinted off to the fifth biggest opening ever for an animated film trailing only Shrek 2, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., and Toy Story 2.

 

Considering Shark Tale's strong opening, the 2004 box office-leading performance of Shrek 2 and the enormous potential of Pixar's The Incredibles, it appears that animation is likely to be the strongest cinema category of 2004.  Shark Tale demonstrates the increased demographic reach of the more sophisticated modern cartoon features, which contain plenty of in-jokes and pop culture references for more mature audience members -- 40% of the Shark Tale audience was 'non-family,' a far higher percentage than was the case for the Disney cartoon hits of the 1990s.

 

The realistic firehouse drama, Ladder 49, came in second with an estimated $22.8 million in its debut frame, while last week's leader, The Forgotten, dropped a mere 43% and pulled in an estimated $12 million.  Sky Captain finished fourth but dropped nearly 50% while adding $3.38 million to its $30 million total.  The zombie comedy Shaun of the Dead had the lowest drop-off in the Top 10, falling only 27% and bringing in almost $2.5 million while showing in just 645 theaters. For the first time in 7 weeks the box office total for the Top Ten films topped $100 million.