The Sony Picutres/Columbia Picures sequel Spider-Man 3 grossed $336.5 million domestically to emerge as the top performer of 2007, a year that saw a record $9.62 billion raked in at the North American box office. The trades are reporting that all six major studios managed to cross the $1 billion mark domestically, despite rising competition from the DVD and home theater markets. The Paramount/Dreamworks team fared best with approximately $1.49 billion earned on the backs of such blockbusters as Shrek the Third (322.7 million) and Transformers ($319.2 million).
Some studios got a late boost with holiday-season releases. Warner Bros.’ I Am Legend crossed the $200 million mark over the New Year’s weekend, and 20th Century Fox’s gamble on a trio of high-pitched rodents paid off to the tune of $153 million for Alvin and the Chipmunks. After seeing Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End plunder $309 million at home over the summer, Disney capped off a winning year with the adventure sequel National Treasure: Book of Secrets earning $142 million in just two weeks.
Further adoption of 3-D exhibition and the expansion of IMAX venues are credited with helping the theatrical exhibition business thrive by offering audiences something they can’t see at home. Films such as Disney’s Meet the Robinsons and Paramount’s Beowulf saw a large percentage of their domestic totals come from specialty venues and a growing number of theater chains equipped for digital 3-D projection.
