Beat Box

July 8, 2002

Men in Black II pulls big money

“Men in Black II” provided its own fireworks for the July 4 holiday, skyrocketing to $90 million over the five-day weekend.

The numbers were all good for the alien-busting sequel, which opened Wednesday with $19 million, took in an additional $16.9 million Thursday and then raked in an estimated $54.1 million from Friday to Sunday – a record for the Independence Day holiday weekend.

If estimates hold, the three-day weekend total will zap the previous July 4 holiday record – the $51 million scooped up by the original Men in Black in 1997 – and will give star Will Smith his top-dollar opening ever.

New Releases for July 9

Counting Crows “Hard Candy” (Geffen)

Glassjaw “Worship and Tribute” (Warner Bros.)

Mighty Mighty Bosstones “Jackknife to a Swan” (Side One Dummy)

Dolly Parton “Halos & Horns” (Sugar Hill)

Red Hot Chili Peppers “By the Way” (Warner Bros.)

Smilez & Southstar “Crash the Party” (ArtistDirect)

Styles A Gangster and a Gentleman (Interscope)

Styx “At the River’s Edge: Live in St. Louis” (Sanctuary/CMC Int’l)

Superdrag “Last Call for Vitriol” (Arena Rock)

TRUSTcompany “The Lonely Position of Neutral” (Geffen)

The Pixies “The Pixies” (spinART)