"Spider-Man 3" box office debut climbs higher

LOS ANGELES, May 8 (Reuters) Superhero movie ''Spider-Man 3'' climbed another 2 per cent over its debut weekend at box offices to a record 382 million dollars world-wide gross when final figures were tallied. Columbia Pictures, which released the film based on the crime fighter with spider-like powers, said the final North American total was 151 million dollars and the international tally was 231 million dollars.

A day earlier, the studio and box office trackers estimated opening weekend ticket sales at 148 million dollars in North America and 227 million dollars internationally for a total 375 million dollars.

Both North American and international box office figures make ''Spider-Man 3'' the No. 1 debut for a 3-day weekend. It tops 2006's ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'' in North America with 135.6 million dollars and ''The Da Vinci Code'' internationally with 155 million dollars.

''Pirates of the Caribbean'' was distributed by The Walt Disney Co's film studio, and ''Da Vinci Code'' was released by Columbia.

''Spider-Man 3'' was a risk for Columbia with a cost of around 258 million dollars to make and another 125 million dollars to market around the world, according to studio and industry sources.

''Spider-Man 3'' kicked off Hollywood's lucrative summer season in which up to 40 per cent of annual ticket sales occur. Still to come are widely anticipated films such as ''Shrek the Third'' and ''Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.'' Reuters SBC DB0850