Arnold Schwarzenegger topped the Fourth of July holiday box office with Terminator 3 collecting an estimated $13.3M on Friday, its third full day of release, bringing the total for the Warner Bros. sequel to $41.7M including Tuesday night previews. Compared to Men in Black, which opened in similar fashion in 1997, the Friday gross was off 16% from the alien pic's $15.9M July 4th gross. At its current pace, T3 might find itself with $42-45M over the Friday-to-Sunday session and a long-weekend haul of $70-73M.

MGM grabbed second place on Friday with Legally Blonde 2 which took in an estimated $5.6M in its third day of release and $21.4M since its Wednesday bow. For the weekend look for a $17-19M opening and $33-35M over five days.

Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas grossed just $1.7M on Friday and brought its total since Wednesday to $4.8M. For the weekend, the DreamWorks toon might grab roughly $6M and around $9M over five days.

Among holdovers, Friday-to-Friday declines were a disturbing 75% for Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, 59% for 28 Days Later, 32% for Finding Nemo, and 65% for The Hulk. Due to holiday celebrations like parades, barbecues, and fireworks, box office sales are often softer than normal on the Fourth of July, but pick up right afterward.

Be sure to check back on Sunday for the complete weekend box office report featuring official studio estimates.

Last Updated: July 5, 2003 at 1:15PM EDT

Written by Gitesh Pandya