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'King Kong' disappoints at the US box office

Peter Jackson's much hyped film fails to break records on its opening day.

Dec 16 2005

'King Kong' failed to set the box office alight on its opening day in America.

Peter Jackson's big budget blockbuster grossed a measly $9.7 million on Wednesday, approximately half the amount that 'The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings' took on the same day four years ago.

Analysts have put the disappointing total down to the fact that many children in the US are still in school at the moment.

Combined with the fact that, unlike the 'Harry Potter' and 'Lord of the Rings' films, 'King Kong' isn't a sequel with a built-in audience, it's easy to see why the film didn't set cinema tills ringing on its first day.

In spite of the lowly total, Jackson's three-hour opus received rave reviews in the press, and with good word of mouth sure to be circulating already, expect 'King Kong' to build momentum on into the weekend.

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