'Indiana Jones' whips up S$137 mil at US box office

'Indiana Jones' whips up S$137 mil at US box office

WHIP-CRACKING archaeologist Indiana Jones dug up treasure at the box office this weekend, with the return of Harrison Ford's fedora-topped icon pulling in US$101 million over three days at North American theaters, Hollywood figures showed on Sunday.

'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' grabbed the lion's share of movie audiences over the US's Memorial Day weekend, according to preliminary figures from box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

The movie set opening records for both Ford and legendary director Steven Spielberg, but paled for a Memorial Day weekend next to 2007's 'Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End' which earned US$114.7 million and 'X-Men: The Last Stand,' which took in US$102.8 million on the same weekend in 2006.

'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' grabbed the lion's share of movie audiences over the US's Memorial Day weekend, according to preliminary figures from box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

That was a sign of the downturn in theatre receipts this year, with earnings off so far by four per cent and attendance down over seven per cent. For the Memorial Day weekend, total earnings were projected to fall 15 per cent from last year, Exhibitor Relations said.

'The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' marked the return of the now four-film Indiana Jones franchise after nearly two decades, with Ford, almost 66, still drawing raves as the sometimes bumbling action-star first introduced to audiences in the 1981 blockbuster 'Raiders of the Lost Ark.'

Second in the weekend rankings was last week's kids' fantasy chart-topper 'The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian,' which earned US$23 million. That was followed by 'Iron Man,' which brought in US$20.2 million dollars, taking its four week total to US$252.3 million.

Fourth was the romantic comedy 'What Happens in Vegas,' starring Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher, with US$9 million, and fifth was 'Speed Racer,' at US$4 million dollars in tickets sold.