De Niro's 'Parents' Still No. 1

Oct. 15 -- Theatergoers rallied to keep family and football movies in the top two box office slots this weekend, despite competition from a bevy of new releases.

According to studio estimates released today, Meet the Parents remained at No. 1 with $21.3 million. Gridiron drama Remember the Titans fought to keep No. 2 with a $13.5 weekend haul.

Parents, starring Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller, has now grossed $59 million in 10 days. Receipts for Denzel Washington’s Titans totaled $64.7 million its third week out.

Though Winona Ryder’s satanic thriller Lost Souls almost unanimously frightened critics — who called it “a waste of talent” and “silly” — the film didn’t scare off audiences. Souls opened in third with a modest $8.4 million.

Newcomers rounded out the top five. The Ladies Man, yet another lewd Saturday Night Live skit expanded for the big screen, raked in $5.7 million. Political drama The Contender won at the box office polls with $5.5 million.

“We’re pretty pleased with the results,” DreamWorks spokesperson Don Harris said of The Contender’s performance. “It’s always nice when a movie grosses in the Top 10 on opening weekend.”

'Best in Show' Trots Ahead

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Bowing at No. 7 with $5.2 million was Dr. T and the Women, a Robert Altman ensemble comedy about a Texan gynecologist suffering a midlife crisis.

In its third weekend of release, actor-writer-director Christopher Guest’s Best in Show finally landed a Top 10 spot. The dog-eat-dog mockumentary licked up $2.3 million, tying for ninth with the Cameron Crowe rock flick Almost Famous.

After a stellar 13 weeks in the Top 10, ghost story What Lies Beneath finally tumbled off the radar. The Michelle Pfeiffer-Harrison Ford film has grossed a monstrous $153.1 million. Also dropping out of the Top 10 were Bring It On, Urban Legends: Final Cut, The Watcher and Nurse Betty.

Tracking firm Exhibitor Relations reported ticket sales for the top 12 films were nearly even with last weekend, and up 6.5 percent from the same period a year ago. This is the first time in 12 weeks ticket receipts have triumphed over 1999 grosses.