SANTA MONICA, Calif. and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Tyler Perry phenomenon continued to gain momentum as Tyler Perry's MADEA'S FAMILY REUNION opened at number one at the North American box office this weekend with an estimated three-day gross of $30,250,000. Playing at 2,194 locations across North America, the film averaged a remarkable estimated $13,788 per screen, demonstrating the enormous breadth and depth of Tyler Perry's audience. The debut weekend of MADEA'S FAMILY REUNION outperformed the opening weekend of Lionsgate's first Tyler Perry hit film, DIARY OF A MAD BLACK WOMAN, by nearly 40 percent. Diary grossed $21.9 million in its opening weekend in February 2005. Lionsgate Toronto is the leading independent filmed entertainment studio.
"It is clear that Tyler Perry's characters and themes are resonating with an even larger moviegoing audience with each new release," said Lionsgate Chief Executive Officer Jon Feltheimer. "Tyler had already achieved enormous success before we brought him into the Lionsgate family, but it has been our privilege to extend his reach to an even broader mainstream commercial audience worldwide. We hope Tyler's and Madea's families will be part of Lionsgate's family for a long time to come."
"I believe that my films and stage plays have universal themes and characters that can appeal to a broad spectrum of audiences, and Lionsgate is the ideal partner in helping to reach these audiences in an innovative and inclusive way," said Tyler Perry. "I would like to thank Lionsgate's superb production, distribution, marketing and publicity teams for making MADEA'S FAMILY REUNION an even bigger success than DIARY OF A MAD BLACK WOMAN, and I look forward to continuing our partnership."
Based upon Tyler Perry's acclaimed stage production, MADEA'S FAMILY REUNION continues the adventures of southern matriarch Madea that were begun in the hit film DIARY OF A MAD BLACK WOMAN. MADEA'S FAMILY REUNION is written and directed by Tyler Perry, produced by Perry and Reuben Cannon and stars Perry, Blair Underwood, Lynn Whitfield, Boris Kodjoe, Jenifer Lewis, Keke Palmer, Maya Angelou and Cicely Tyson. The Madea soundtrack, driven by the hit Brian McKnight single "Find Myself In You," which is currently #10 on Billboard's urban adult contemporary chart, is expected to be one of the top-charting soundtracks in the nation when it debuts on the Billboard charts this week.
MADEA'S FAMILY REUNION continues a strong Lionsgate 2006 theatrical release slate which kicked off the year with the horror hit HOSTEL, which has grossed $46 million at the domestic box office. Upcoming releases include Trent Cooper's LARRY THE CABLE GUY: HEALTH INSPECTOR (March 24), the inspirational AKEELAH AND THE BEE, starring Laurence Fishburne, Angela Bassett and Keke Palmer, whose trailers are attached to MADEA'S FAMILY REUNION (April 28), the provocative Sundance sensation HARD CANDY (April), Lionsgate's first entry in the Spanish-language feature film marketplace, LA MUJER DE MI HERMANO, starring telenovela sensation Barbara Mori (April) and the horror film SEE NO EVIL, starring WWE superstar Kane (May 19).
Lionsgate is the premier independent producer and distributor of motion pictures, television programming, home entertainment, family entertainment and video-on-demand content. Its prestigious and prolific library is a valuable source of recurring revenue and a foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lionsgate brand is synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the globe.
http://www.lionsgate.com/
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