Spider-Man 3 became an overnight box-office marvel over the weekend as it snared an estimated $373 million in its web internationally, $148 million of that in North America. It was the biggest three-day haul in history. The film accounted for more than 80 percent of all ticket sales, and could go into its second weekend with more than $200 million (domestic) on its accounts. Then again, there was little competition. The No. 2 film at the box office was Disturbia, which had held the top position for the previous three weeks. It took in $5.7 million. The only other new film released this weekend, the romantic comedy Lucky You, starring Drew Barrymore and Eric Bana, came nowhere near living up to its name. The film earned only $2.5 million, making it one of the biggest flops of the year. It had also flopped with critics. Claudia Puig in USA Today said that it was "lifeless as a poker face." Liam Lacey in the Toronto Globe & Mail remarked that it was "flatter than week-old beer." And Kyle Smith in the New York Post began his review with the words, "This spring, boredom has a new name: Lucky You."

The top ten films for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Media by Numbers: 1. Spider-Man 3, $148 million; 2. Disturbia, $5.7 million; 3. Fracture, $3.4 million; 4. The Invisible, $3.1 million; 5. Next, $2.8 million; 6. Lucky You, $2.5 million; 7. Meet the Robinsons, $2.46 million; 8. Blades of Glory, $2.3 million; 9. Hot Fuzz, $2.1 million; 10. Are We Done Yet?, $1.7 million.

The success of Spider-Man 3 brought promises of additional episodes of Spidey and his enemies. "There'll be a fourth and a fifth and sixth and a seventh," Sony Pictures Entertainment co-chairman Amy Pascal told Daily Variety. "As many stories as Peter Parker has to tell, we'll do sequels." Her colleague, Michael Lynton, told the BBC that there would be "as many as we can make good stories for. ... Everybody's been so busy trying to get this one out that that's been the focus. ... When everybody comes up for air, we can think about how to make the next one." Lynton added that, although the critics by and large drubbed the film, "the exit polls show that the audience really loved the movie, and that's what counts." Sony distribution chief Jeff Blake told the New York Times that the box-office count "justifies the expense of a franchise picture like this. And I think it's a great sign for the summer." Several analysts predicted that the film will exceed the revenue produced by the previous two Spider-Man installments, which grossed $821 million and $783 million respectively worldwide -- although they expressed doubt that it could overtake the all-time box office champ Titanic, which took in $1.85 billion.

Guillermo Del Toro, Alfonso Cuarón and Alejandro González Iñárritu, the three Mexican directors who became a sensastion in 2006 with such films as Pan's Labyrinth, Children of Men and Babel, respectively, are offering themselves, along with two lesser-known directors, to Hollywood in a five-picture package worth as much as $100 million, the Los Angeles Times reported today (Monday). The two other directors in the deal are Cuarón's younger brother Carlos, the co-writer of Y Tu Mamá También, and Rodrigo García, director of Sony Pictures' upcoming Passengers. The Times said that Universal is the most likely buyer.

What is being billed as the biggest Star Wars exhibition ever in the U.K. has opened in London, including costumes of the principal characters, set pieces, and even a "training school" for prospective Jedi knights. The show is opening just weeks away from the 30th anniversary of the premiere of the original Star Wars in the U.S. on May 25, 1977. The exhibition's opening also occurred on the same day that a survey was released by Britain's Sky Movies channel doubtfully claiming that Star Wars was the most-watched movie of all time and that half of respondents had watched it more than 20 times. (The website ShowbizData.com estimates that the number of theater admissions for Gone With the Wind is at least four times greater than those for Star Wars.)

ABC's promise to present an explosive exposé revealing the names of high-placed government officials who were patrons of Deborah Palfrey, the alleged DC Madam, appeared to fizzle Friday when a report on the network's 20/20 magazine show named only the two officials who had previously been mentioned in its publicity. ABC reporter Brian Ross said that others listed in Palfrey's 46 pounds of phone records were not well enough known to be newsworthy. Nevertheless, Ross said that among the clients was a recently deceased federal prosecutor, some military officers who included the head of an Air Force intelligence squadron, and a senior official at the World Bank. The decision to withhold their names appeared to miff some reporters who had hyped the program. "Many media outlets, including the Washington Post and a number of cable news programs, kept up a steady drumbeat of coverage," Washington Post media writer Howard Kurtz wrote. The feature, which lasted only seven minutes, did little to boost the program's ratings. It drew a third-place 5.5 rating and an 11 share, about its average for the season.

Rupert Murdoch's hope of buying the Wall Street Journal and naming his upcoming business channel after it ran into more opposition over the weekend as a large shareholder in the financial news publisher said that he would vote against a takeover by Murdoch. In a statement posted on the Journal's website, Jim Ottaway Jr., who holds a 6-percent stake in the company, warned that a takeover by Murdoch would lead to the "loss of the independence and integrity of a leading national editorial voice." He said that the Bancroft family, which holds a 64-percent controlling interest in the company, "has treated Dow Jones as a public trust, not for personal or political interests, or maximum enhancement of family wealth by sale to a high bidder."

William Fisher, who operates a business from his home "dedicated to bringing the everyday home consumer quality premium name-brand products," was the announced winner Friday of actor John Schneider's car, the General Lee, used in the Dukes of Hazzard TV series, for $9,900,500. An email message sent to Fisher was not returned, and Schneider's representatives had not indicated as of this morning (Monday) whether the money had changed hands. Schneider had said that he planned to finance a sequel to his movie, Collier & Co. -- Hot Pursuit! with funds from the General Lee auction. "Now Collier & Co. 2 is in the bank," Schneider said Friday.

The CBS News website has decided not to allow comments from the public concerning presidential candidate Barack Obama because many of them to date have turned out to be racist in nature, the CBS blog Public Eye reported Friday. It quoted Mike Sims, director of news and operations for CBSNews.com, as saying that the website has often deleted racist comments about Obama; however, "the volume and the persistence" of them made them difficult to handle.

Ken Warwick and Nigel Lythgoe, the two executive producers of American Idol, have backed out of producing the Emmys telecast in September, the TV academy announced Friday. The pair said that their current commitments and demanding schedule would prevent them from devoting "the creative energy and time necessary to make the Emmys outstanding." At the same time, the academy announced that Ken Ehrlich, who had produced three previous Emmy awards shows, had agreed to produce a fourth. The 59th Primetime Emmy Awards show is set for Sept. 16.

Its ratings may not be what they once were, but ABC's Desperate Housewives remained the most-watched TV show Sunday night, scoring an 11.0 rating and a 17 share. A two-hour Saturday Night Live in the '90s special on NBC between 9:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. flopped with an average -- and third place -- 4.7/7.