The Batman adventure The Dark Knight, starring Christian Bale and Heath Ledger, shattered another box-office benchmark this weekend – reaching beyond the $300 million mark in a mere 10 days.
The movie grossed $75.6 million in its second weekend in theaters, bringing its North American box-office total to $314,245,000, Warner Bros. head of distribution Dan Fellman tells the Associated Press. The number breaks the record established by 2006's Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, which hit $300 million after 16 days. Fellman says Dark Knight could conceivably reach the $400-million mark in about 18 days – placing it ahead of Shrek 2's 43-day record in 2004.
Hold on to your life preservers – The Dark Knight might also surpass 1997's Titanic as the highest-grossing film in U.S. history, according to Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media By Numbers. That sinking-ship saga, starring Leonardo Di Caprio, made $600,788,188 domestically.
Rounding out this weekend's top five at the box office were Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly in Step Brothers, with an estimated $30 million; Meryl Streep in Mamma Mia!, $17.9 million; David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson in The X-Files: I Want to Believe, $10.2 million; and Brendan Fraser in Journey to the Center of the Earth, $9.4 million.
Source: www.people.com
Katherine Heigl flashes her famous grin on the streets of Pasadena, Calif., where she lunched with family and did a little shopping. It has been rumored that the Grey’s Anatomy star’s character Izzie will have a story involving a fatal brain tumor this season.
She just shot the movie Labor Pains, but Lindsay Lohan is already back to work – this time on the set of Ugly Betty in New York City. Lohan, who made a cameo appearance in the show's season finale in May, is expected to guest star in five episodes this fall.
Maggie Gyllenhaal revels in being the center of attention (in a Stella McCartney jumpsuit) at the London premiere of The Dark Knight on Monday. The Batman film has already made box-office history by raking in a record-breaking $158.3 million.
Tori Spelling, who recently lost her beloved pug Mimi La Rue, shows her commitment to animal care at Much Love Animal Rescue’s 2nd Annual Bow Wow WOW! event Saturday at the Playboy Mansion in Westwood, Calif., where the actress unveiled her Mimi La Rue fund.
Raking in $155.34 million in its first weekend, The Dark Knight has delivered the best weekend box office opening ever. The record was previously set by 2007's Spider-Man 3, with $151.1 million. The Dark Knight - starring the late Heath Ledger as the Joker - earned an estimated $66.4 million on its opening day. It took in $18.5 million in Friday midnight shows alone. The last Batman installment, 2006's Batman Begins, grossed $15 million on its opening day and $48.7 million for the weekend.
Source: www.usmagazine.com
You know Katie Holmes is kicking herself for turning down the role in the this movie and letting Maggie Gyllenhaal have it. I mean Katie turned it down to do Mad Money. That made what, just over 20 and half million dollars. That is a big difference. Maybe she won’t listen to Tommy next time.
Jennifer Aniston looks forward to a day of shopping, stopping by the West Hollywood boutique Noodle Stories Wednesday. Meanwhile, her musician beau John Mayer was en route to a concert performance in Ohio.
Jessica Simpson dedicates a song, "You're My Sunday," to boyfriend Tony Romo Saturday during her first concert in three years at the Country Thunder USA festival in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin. 
Katie Holmes, who debuted a feathered 'do the day before, continues the good work Wednesday, studying her lines before reporting to the Los Angeles set of ABC's Eli Stone for a guest-starring role.
After the star-studded premiere of her new movie Monday, The Dark Knight's Maggie Gyllenhaal continues to make the rounds Wednesday, arriving for an appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman in New York City. 
Nicole Kidman heads to a Nashville mattress store with husband Keith Urban (not pictured) Wednesday, just nine days after giving birth to daughter Sunday Rose. Obviously, sleep is top priority for the new parents.
Heath Ledger's family and co-stars paid tribute to the late actor at Monday night's Dark Knight premiere in New York City. His father Kim and his wife Ines (Heath's stepmother) flew in from Australia for the event. As he left the screening, Kim gave reporters a thumbs-up. Along with Heath's older sister Kate, Heath's mother Sally Bell and her husband also attended.
"He gives a master performance," Aaron Eckhart, who plays district attorney Harvey Dent (a.k.a. Two-Face), told Usmagazine.com. "I am honored and proud to be in this film with him." Added co-star Maggie Gyllenhaal (who plays attorney Rachel Dawes): "He’s remarkable, he’s inspiring."
Actor Gary Oldman, who takes on the role of Lieutenant Jim Gordon, called Heath's performance as the Joker "electric." Co-star Michael Caine, who plays butler Alfred Pennyworth, told Us he'd be "very surprised" if Heath didn't nab an Oscar nomination. "He’s got my vote," Caine said.
"What we wanted to do was create a villain that's iconic and terrifying, I think, but also recognizably human," director Christopher Nolan told the Associated Press. "And I think Heath does that in a very interesting way - I think people are going to be blown away."
Christian Bale, who plays the Caped Crusader, said it was "tragic [Heath] is not here, but I am here to see his talents and celebrate it, and I hope everybody will." The film, already sold out in some cities, is getting rave reviews from critics. Rolling Stone's Peter Travers gave it 3.5 stars out of four, saying The Dark Knight is an "absolute stunner" and that Heath is "mad-crazy-blazing brilliant as the Joker." Heath died of an accidental prescription drug overdose at age 28 in January.
Source: www.usmagazine.com
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