'PASSION' Theater number to expand

Demand is expected to rise over Easter weekend.
KNIGHT RIDDER TRIBUNE
LOS ANGELES -- Films that start out big in the marketplace usually see their circulation shrink within a few weeks, but that's not the case with "The Passion of the Christ."
In anticipation of the relevant Easter season holidays, Mel Gibson's film about the last 12 hours in Jesus Christ's life expanded last week by 194 venues to 3,408 theaters. That theater count will make "Passion" the most widely circulated film in the marketplace.
Though many films start out in a smaller number of theaters -- 1,000 to 2,000 -- and work their way up, Passion made its debut on an already high venue count of 3,043. When a film starts at that level, there's usually nowhere to go but down.
"I think it's a smart move," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office watcher Exhibitor Relations. "They're anticipating increased demand, so they're making it more available."
But "Passion" has proved to be an atypical film. With $319 million in gross receipts thus far, "Passion" is poised to move into the top 10 in all-time domestic box-office receipts. It was the top film its first three weeks in theaters, second in its fourth week and a close third last weekend.
The $30 million-budgeted "Passion" was produced and financed by Gibson's Icon Productions and distributed by independent Newmarket Films.
It is by far the most successful independently released film and the best-performing "R"-rated film ever in the United States.
Box-office watchers are wondering whether "Passion" can rebound to the top over the Good Friday-Easter Sunday time frame.
"I'm not prepared to say it'll be No. 1 on Easter weekend, but you never know," Dergarabedian said.
On Easter weekend, Disney's $95 million film, "The Alamo," will be released on Good Friday, along with Warner's "The Whole Ten Yards," a sequel to 2000's "The Whole Nine Yards."
Others on tap include "Ella Enchanted" from Disney's Miramax division, and two movies from 20th Century Fox, "The Girl Next Door" and "Johnson Family Vacation."