September 30, 2002 |
HOME SWEET HOME
Sorry Julia, but America has crowned a new sweetheart. Reese Witherspoon proved her box office might this weekend with the $37.5 million opening of Sweet Home Alabama. The romantic comedy debuted at No. 1 and shattered several records in the process: It was September's biggest bow and Witherspoon's largest opening ever. (Somewhere, Alicia Silverstone is kicking herself.) The Jackie Chan-Jennifer Love Hewitt action vehicle The Tuxedo, meanwhile, was all dressed up with no place to go but second place. Still, considering the film's dreadful reviews, it grossed a suitable $15.1 million. Rounding out the top five: Barbershop (No. 3 with $10.1 million), My Big Fat Greek Wedding (No. 4 with $9.8 million) and The Banger Sisters (No. 5 with $5.4 million). |
PEOPLE WHO NEED BABS
There's nothing like a good liberal cause to coax Barbra Streisand out of semi-retirement. The diva delivered a nine-song set Sunday night at a star-studded Democratic fundraiser in Hollywood. The event — which also featured performances by Barry Manilow and comedian Steve Harvey — raised $6 million toward Dems' efforts to take back Congress. |
IT'S NOT CHEAP
Friends has overtaken Survivor as TV's priciest show for Madison Ave. A 30-second commercial on NBC's Emmy-winning comedy costs $455,700, according to Advertising Age. ER is second with $438,514 a spot, followed by Survivor, which slips from first to third with $418,750. |
MATCHMAKER IN THE CITY
NBC has ordered a one-hour dramedy pilot from Sex and the City creator Darren Star about a New York matrimonial lawyer who moonlights as a high-class matchmaker, Variety reports. As recently reported, Star is also hard at work on a new HBO soap set in Pacific Palisades, Calif. |
BAD KARMA
A judge has refused to toss out a $60 million lawsuit against aging action star Steven Seagal that alleges he backed out of a four-picture deal on the advice of his Buddhist spiritual adviser. The suit, which will now proceed to trial, was brought by Seagal's ex-business partner, producer Julius Nasso. |
HATE-CRIME DRAMA
Jon Voight, Louis Gossett Jr. and Joe Morton have been tapped to star in the Showtime original movie Jasper, Texas, based on the racially motivated murder of James Byrd Jr.. |
SEND IN THE CLONES
Robert De Niro is in talks to star as a scientist who attempts to bring an 8-year-old boy back to life in the stem-cell thriller Godsend. Greg Kinnear and Rebecca Romijn-Stamos are negotiating to play the kid's parents. |
SHORT CUTS
The premiere of CBS's new taxicab drama Hack got a decent sampling Friday, averaging 12.6 million viewers and finishing first in its 9-10 pm timeslot... Laurence Fishburne married Firefly actress Gina Torres Sept. 20 in New York. |
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