''Big Hit'' shoots down "Angels'' at box office
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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "The Big Hit," a shoot-em-up comedic drama starring Mark Wahlberg and Lou Diamond Philips, blasted its way into the top spot at the North American weekend box office, according to studio estimates released Sunday.

The movie earned about $11.0 million for the Friday-to- Sunday period, displacing "City of Angels," which slipped to second with $9.0 million after two weeks at No. 1.

"The Big Hit" was released by TriStar Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp., and becomes Sony's first No. 1 since "Starship Troopers" during the weekend of Nov. 7-9 last year.

"Titanic" and "The Object of My Affection" tied for third with $5.0 million each. "Lost in Space" was fifth with about $4.4 million. All estimates were supplied by officials from the various studios. Final figures will be released Monday.

The 17-day total for "City of Angels," which stars Nicolas Cage and Meg Ryan, stands at $46.6 million. The picture is released by Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc.

"Titanic" has earned $560.7 million since its Dec. 19 release. The movie is released in North America by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc.

"The Object of My Affection," starring Jennifer Aniston, has earned $17.0 million after 10 days. The movie is released by 20th Century Fox, a unit of News Corp.

"Lost in Space" has hauled in $58.5 million since its April 3 release. It is released by New Line Cinema, a unit of Time Warner.

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-- Dan Draghici (ddraghic@sprint.ca), April 26, 1998

Answers

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-- Thomas M. Terashima (titanicShack@yahoo.com), May 13, 1998.