The vampire sequel Underworld: Evolution powered its way to a strong number one debut on Friday grossing an estimated $10.6M in its first day of release. The figure was up 17% from the $9M first-day take of the original Underworld in September 2003. For the weekend, Evolution could generate $25-27M leading the box office with ease.

Other new films saw more modest results. The Amazon adventure End of the Spear opened to an estimated $1.5M from 1,162 theaters while the historical drama The New World took in an estimated $1.2M from 811 locations in its first day of wide release. Friday-to-Sunday grosses could approach $5M for Spear and $4M for World.

Boosting its theatercount from 683 to 1,196, Brokeback Mountain surged on Friday grossing $2.1M and jumping into the top five. Focus expanded the Ang Lee film after winning four Golden Globes and could lasso about $7M over the weekend pushing the cume to $41M.

Overall, the top ten films on Friday grossed an estimated $27M, up 6% from a year ago when Are We There Yet? led the way with $5.7M on its way to a $18.6M weekend.

Among sophomore holdovers, Friday-to-Friday declines were 42% for Glory Road, 37% for Last Holiday, and a slender 22% for Hoodwinked.

Be sure to read the NEW Oscar Spotlight column. This special seven-week series features one-on-one interviews with the producers and studio executives behind the most acclaimed films of the season. Check in every Friday for a new interview that goes behind the scenes of this year's big Oscar contenders.

Last Updated: January 21, 2006 at 1:00PM EST

Written by Gitesh Pandya